Association of Blood Mercury Level and Neurobehavioral Performance in Korean Elementary School Students / 대한산업의학회지

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: This study was conducted to examine the effect of blood mercury on neurobehavioral performance in Korean elementary school students. METHODS: We measured the blood mercury concentration in 1,077 elementary school students from Seoul, Busan, Daegu and Gwangju, then the students underwent computerized neurobehavioral test. RESULTS: The mean concentration of blood mercury of study subjects was 2.10 microg/L. An increased blood mercury was associated with an increased reaction time in digit addition and symbol digit. CONCLUSIONS: The blood mercury concentration of study subjects was very high compared to findings in a foreign country. We found several associations between blood mercury level and neurobehavioral performance.