DETERMINANTS AND PREVALENCE OF CHILDHOOD LEAD POISONING

(A CASE STUDY OF KAWAYE VILLAGE, ANKA LOCAL GOVERNMENT AREA, ZAMFARA STATE; 2013)

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Author

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Department of Medicine

ABSTRACT
Lead poisoning remains one of the most significant and prevalent diseases of environmental origin globally, accounting for 0.6% of the global burden of diseases. Children under the age of 6 years are especially vulnerable to lead poisoning, which can severely affect mental and physical development. This study was carried out in Kawaye village, Anka Local Government Area of Zamfara State to find out the determinants and prevalence of childhood lead poisoning in Zamfara State and specifically, to determine risk factors and prevalence of childhood lead poisoning and socio-demographic characteristics of children affected by lead poisoning in Kawaye village, Anka Local Government Area of Zamfara State. In a descriptive cross sectional study design and using simple random sampling technique, 307 eligible children aged 6 years and below were recruited. Data were collected using interviewer-administered semi-structured questionnaire to obtain information on socio-demographics, risk factors for lead poisoning, history of exposure to lead, and signs and symptoms of toxicity. Blood specimens were collected for determination of blood lead levels, anemia and malaria parasitemia. In addition, household soils were tested for presence of lead. Data were entered into and analyzed using Epi info™ 7 software. The study showed a very high prevalence of lead poisoning of 92.5% in Kawaye village. The mean age of studied children was 38.5 months ± 18.5 SD. Majority of the studied children belonged to age groups 48-59 and ≥ 60 months with slight male predominance. Children most affected by lead poisoning were males (p = 0.455), belonging to the age group 35 months and below (p = 0.422), and whose parents were miners (14.7%) and farmers (37.1%). More than half of the fathers and/or guardians of studied children had informal education (53.7%) with few having neither informal nor formal education (4.2%). In addition, nearly one-third of the fathers and/or guardians lived below poverty line and about the same proportion (30.3%) earned at least the minimum wage set by the Federal Government of Nigeria monthly. xviii Altogether, 44 of 307 (14.3%) households were found to have soils contaminated with lead of varying degrees. The median household soil lead level was 61 PPM, ranging from non-detectable to 24000 PPM. About 11% of the households had mild-moderate contamination, while 2.9% were severely contaminated with lead. Moreover, about 86% of the studied children had varying degrees of anemia with a mean PCV level of 26.9% (SD ± 5.5). On the other hand, 59% of the children had variable levels of malaria parasitemia. Low levels of education and socioeconomic status of father/guardian, use of kohl eye cosmetic on child, anemia and malaria parasitemia were found to be independent risk factors for childhood lead poisoning. In conclusion, the study established a very high prevalence of lead poisoning in Kawaye village, with most of the affected children belonging to age group 35 months and below. It is therefore recommended that targeted interventions should be designed to address the identified risk factors in order to control and prevent childhood lead poisoning in Kawaye village and the State at large. Key words: Lead poisoning, Pattern, Determinants, Zamfara State