Men with Increased Bone and Blood Lead Levels are at Increased Risk for Heart Disease

Howard Hu, M.D. and Robert O. Wright, M.D., M.P.H.
Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health
R01ES005257, P42ES005947, and R44ES03918

A recent NIEHS-sponsored report using data from the Normative Aging Study initiated in 1961 by the Department of Veterans Affairs shows links between exposure to lead and the risk of heart disease in aging men. The study participants consisted of 2,280 living in Massachusetts. Men with the highest blood or bone lead levels had more heart attacks or angina than men with lower overall lead exposure.

An ischemic heart disease event, defined as myocardial infarction or angina pectoris confirmed by a cardiologist, occurred in 83 cases (70 nonfatal and 13 fatal). The average blood, tibia, and patellar lead concentrations were higher in the ischemic heart disease cases than in controls. The lead levels correlated with about a 25 percent increase in risk for ischemic heart disease.

Lead exposure is known to cause neurological damage in children and also to be a risk factor for hypertension and kidney disease. The current findings further the understanding of the long-term consequences of lead exposure and strongly suggest the health effects of lead can persist long after the initial exposure occurs.

Citation: Jain NB, Potula V, Schwartz J, Vokonas PS, Sparrow D, Wright RO, Nie H, Hu H. Lead levels and ischemic heart disease in a prospective study of middle-aged and elderly men: the VA Normative Aging Study. Environ Health Perspect. 2007 Jun;115(6):871-5.