Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36352379›Full record

ArticleBMC public health2022

'As safe as houses; the risk of childhood lead exposure from housing in England and implications for public health'.

Helen Crabbe, Neville Q Verlander, Neelam Iqbal, Rebecca Close, Geraldine White, Giovanni S Leonardi, Araceli Busby

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC public health, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.3field-weighted citation impact, top 43% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 3 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 1 institution.

Helen CrabbeRadiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards Directorate, UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), Chilton, Oxon, UK. helen.crabbe@ukhsa.gov.uk.
Neville Q VerlanderStatistics, Modelling and Economics Department, National Infection Service, UKHSA, London, UK.
Neelam IqbalRadiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards Directorate, UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), Chilton, Oxon, UK.
Rebecca CloseRadiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards Directorate, UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), Chilton, Oxon, UK.
Geraldine WhiteNorth East and North Central London Health Protection Team, UKHSA, London, UK.
Giovanni S LeonardiRadiation, Chemical and Environmental Hazards Directorate, UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), Chilton, Oxon, UK.
Araceli BusbyNorth East and North Central London Health Protection Team, UKHSA, London, UK.
UK Health Security Agency

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

aimExposure to lead can harm a child's health, including damage to the nervous system, delayed growth, hearing loss, and many other adverse health effects, as well as implications for social, economic, educational and social well-being. Lead exposure in children is still a concern and cases require public health management to find the exposure source and interrupt the exposure pathway. Housing characteristics can indicate the presence of lead-contaminated paint and leaded water supply pipes. We aimed to explore the relationship between housing characteristics and elevated blood lead concentration (BLC) in children in England.

methodsWe used a retrospective cohort design and included all cases of lead exposure in children reported to the UK Health Security Agency between 2014 and 2020 via surveillance. A case was a child aged under 16 years, resident in England, BLC of ≥ 0.48 μmol/L (10 µg/dL) and referred for public health management. We collected case demographic details and housing characteristics (age and type). We explored associations between elevated BLC and risk factors, using generalised linear mixed effects models and compared cases' housing type to that expected nationally.

resultsTwo hundred and sixty-six out of 290 cases met the case definition. There was no difference in BLCs between genders, age groups, deprivation, and housing type. After adjusting for reporting source, housing age and type, cases residing in housing built pre-1976 had a BLC of 0.32 (95%CI 0.02, 0.63) µmols/L (6.63 (95%CI 0.42, 13.0) µg/dL) higher than cases living in housing built after this time. Cases were 1.68 times more likely to be living in terraced housing (housing adjoined to one another) than other children and less likely to live in apartments and detached properties.

conclusionThis study suggests an association between housing characteristics and BLC in children. Housing age and type may act as a proxy for lead exposure risk through exposure to leaded paint, lead water pipes, and lead contaminated dust from indoor and outdoor sources. Public health action should consider targeting families more at risk in older housing by raising awareness of the potential presence of lead pipes and paint. Interventions should include working with wider stakeholders including other housing and environmental professionals, the private sector, as well as parents and carers.

Indexed as

LeadLead PoisoningAgedChildDustEnvironmental ExposureFemaleHousingHumansMalePublic HealthRetrospective StudiesDustLeadBlood lead concentrationChildrenEnglandEpidemiologyExposureHousingLeadPaintSurveillanceWater pipes

Identifiers

PMID36352379
PMCPMC9644560
OpenAlexW4308605014

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.