ABSTRACT
Objective To find the chemical elements whose contents are abnormal in the soil of the high prevalence areas of birth defects in Shanxi Province. Methods 131 soil samples were collected from the high and low prevalence areas of birth defects respectively in 2005, the contents of 16 elements were determined with inductively coupled plasma (ICP)machine. The data were analyzed with regression and nonparametric tests. Results The total content of elements in the soil of the high prevalence areas was significantly higher than that of the low prevalence area. Compared with the low prevalence area, in a high prevalence area, the content of Mo, As, Pb, Ni, V and Se in soil was abnormal, Mo, As, Ni and Pb showed a significant relationship to the prevalence rate of birth defects, in another high prevalence area, the content of Sn, Se, Mo, Zn, Sr, Pb, Ni, Fe, V, Ca, Cu, Al, Mg and Na was abnormal, Pb, Mg, Ca, Al and Zn showed a significant relationship to the prevalence rate of birth defects. Conclusion Maybe the abnormal content of Mo, As, Ni, Pb, Mg, Ca, Al and Zn in the soil is one of the risk factors for birth defects.