Elevated Hair Mercury Levels Are Associated With Neurodevelopmental Deficits in Children Living Near Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in Peru.

ABSTRACT: Children living near artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) are at risk of exposure to mercury, a neurotoxicant. It is not certain whether such exposures are harming development, as they occur in underresourced contexts entwined with other stressors, such as malnutrition and enteric infection. This study sought to investigate the association between hair-mercury levels and visual-motor, cognitive, and physical development among children living near ASGM in the Peruvian Amazon. Total hair-mercury levels were measured in 164 children ages 5-12 living in Madre de Dios, Peru. Primary outcomes included Visual-Motor Integration assessed via the Beery-VMI Developmental Test, General Cognitive Ability assessed via the Batería-III Woodcock-Munoz (Spanish-language Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cog

SUBMITTER: Reuben A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7240868 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature