Air Quality Criteria for Lead Volume II of II - (NEPIS)(EPA) - US ...

AX6-85
Table AX6-4.2 (cont’d). Renal Effects of Lead in the Occupational Population
Reference, Study
Location, and
Period Study Description Pb Measurement Findings, Interpretation
Europe (cont’d)
Gerhardsson et al.
(1992)
Sweden
Study date not
provided
70 current Pb smelter workers.
30 retired Pb smelter workers.
31 active and 10 retired truck assembly workers (controls).
Renal outcomes = serum creatinine, urinary ∃-2
microglobulin, NAG, and albumin, clearances of
creatinine, albumin, relative albumin, ∃-2 microglobulin
and relative ∃-2 microglobulin.
Blood Pb measured annually since 1950; time integrated
blood Pb index = summation of annual blood Pb
measurements.
Median blood Pb
31.9 µg/dL (current Pb workers)
9.9 µg/dL (retired Pb workers)
4.1 µg/dL (current control workers)
3.5 µg/dL (retired control workers)
Median time integrated blood Pb index
369.9 µg/dL (current Pb workers)
1496.1 µg/dL (retired Pb workers)
Median calcaneus Pb
48.6 µg/g bone mineral
(current Pb workers)
100.2 µg/g bone mineral
(retired Pb workers)
Median tibia Pb
13.0 µg/g bone mineral
(current Pb workers)
39.3 µg/g bone mineral
(retired Pb workers)
3.4 µg/g bone mineral
(current control workers)
12.0 µg/g bone mineral
(retired control workers)
Creatinine clearance was higher in Pb workers;
p-values not reported for this or other median
values between Pb workers and controls.
In current Pb workers, blood Pb was positively
correlated with urinary ∃-2 microglobulin and time
integrated blood Pb index was correlated with
NAG (data not shown).
Strengths include assessment of cumulative Pb,
inclusion of former workers.
Limitations = statistical analysis, lack of power
by stratifying.