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Backgrounder: |
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CDC Releases New Guidance on Lead Screening
More Localized Screening Benefits Children at Risk of Lead Poisoning
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November 3, 1997
Contact: CDC Press Office 404-639-3286 |
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Although there have been dramatic improvements in reducing lead in the
environment, there are still nearly one million U.S. children with elevated blood lead
levels. This statistic underscores the need for the new lead screening guidance recently
released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The guidance focuses on
helping state and local health care professionals identify children who are still at risk
for lead exposure and who may need follow-up services.
Through continuing analysis, CDC has improved its lead screening
policies. New information about lead has shown that lead exposure occurs in predictable
patterns throughout the United States. The new guidance will reflect this latest
knowledge, and is designed to assist state and local health officials to determine which
children in their jurisdictions will benefit from screening. However, in the absence of a
statewide plan or other formal guidance from health officials, universal screening for
virtually all young children, as called for in the 1991 CDC guidelines, should continue to
be carried out.
The guidance discusses the need for state health officials to examine
local conditions that can contribute to lead hazards, and design a data-driven screening
recommendation based upon findings. Several steps are outlined as to how to undertake this
process, and include such activities as forming a professionally diverse advisory
committee and assessing existing lead exposure and screening capacity.
As a result, it is expected that more children who are actually exposed
to lead will be screened, while children with low risk for lead exposure will not receive
unnecessary screening, increasing the efficiency and benefits of screening efforts. In
particular, the guidance recommends that state and local health officials determine
appropriate screening policies by targeting their efforts at children who live in older
homes and children from low-income families, two variables highly associated with lead
exposure.
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"Working through state and local public health officials is the most
effective means of providing lead screening and follow-up care for children," said
Dr. Richard Jackson, director of CDCs National Center for Environmental Health
(NCEH). "CDCs position on the adverse health effects caused by lead has not
changed, our goal is to expand screening and follow-up care for those children who are at
risk. This new guidance will provide criteria for state and local public health officials
to identify these children so that they can receive the appropriate care if they are
exposed to lead."
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Dr. Jackson also emphasized that "the declines in blood lead levels
can be attributed to the continued public health commitment demonstrated by CDC, the U. S.
Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and
the many efforts of state and local governments in support of increased screening and
identification of children with elevated blood lead levels."
The guidance document,
Screening Young Children for Lead Poisoning:
Guidance for State and Local Public Health Officials can be obtained by calling the
toll free number: (888)232-6789, or can be accessed through the Internet at http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/.
CDC is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
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