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CDC Issues Recommendations for Lead Poisoning Prevention in Newly Arrived Refugee ChildrenATLANTA Although blood lead levels (BLLs) in children aged 1 to 5 years are decreasing in the United States, the prevalence of elevated BLLs among newly resettled refugee children is substantially higher than children born in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration have developed recommendations to address lead exposure among refugee children. "By being proactive in identifying at-risk refugee children, we can control or eliminate lead sources in the childrens environment whether they are products the families brought with them or lead paint, dust and soil hazards in homes in the US," said Mary Jean Brown, chief of the lead poisoning prevention branch at CDC. The complete Recommendations for Lead Poisoning Prevention in Newly Arrived Refugee Children are available online at www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead. The following recommendations were developed for use by state and local health departments and state refugee health coordinators: Identify Children with Elevated Blood Lead Levels
Early Post-arrival Evaluation and Therapy
Health Education/Outreach
The recommendations are based partially on Elevated Blood Lead Levels in Refugee Children New Hampshire, 2003-2004, which was released earlier this year. The report documents the occurrence of elevated BLLs in refugee children, primarily from Africa, who resettled in New Hampshire. For more information about the report, visit www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5402a4.htm Lead can damage a childs central nervous system, kidneys and reproductive system, and at higher levels can cause coma, convulsions and death. Lead poisoning is entirely preventable. However, nearly half a million children living in the United States have lead levels in their blood that are high enough to cause irreversible damage to their health. "These comprehensive recommendations will bring us closer to the Healthy
People 2010 goal of eliminating lead poisoning in Americas children," Dr.
Brown added. |
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