Analysis and investigation of the distribution of endemic arsenism in Shanxi Province / 中华地方病学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the distribution of endemic arsenism and to provide a scientific basis for control and prevention of the disease.Methods According to previous investigation,in the high-arsenic water areas,the arsenic diseased areas and the surrounding lands,35 counties were investigated.Water arsenic was screened in all the survey sites,villages with water arsenic exceeding the standard were quantitative surveyed of water arsenic and the disease conditions.Screening of arsenic content in drinking water was done by the method of half-quantitative fast reagent kit.Quantitative determination of arsenic in water was done by hydride generationatomic fluorescence spectrometry (HG-AFS).Patients of endemic arsenism were diagnosed by the Standard of Diagnosis for Endemic Arsenism (WS/T 211-2001).Identification of area was done by Definition and Division Standard for Endemic Arsenism (WS 277-2007).The data were analyzed using SPSS 13.0 for windows.Results Water arsenic of 151 villages in 15 counties among 1 771 villages were higher than the national drinking water quality level(0.05 mg/L).Exposure population of high arsenic was 177 018 people.The census results of high arsenic water sources indicated that the ratio of drinking water arsenic levels higher than the national standard was 35.10％ (2 355/6 709) and the highest contents of arsenic was 1.733 0 mg/L.The disease census indicated that there were 33 latency arsenism districts and 118 arsenism districts.There was totally 39 757 patients with latency arsenism.Totally 137 261 people lived in arsenism districts.Light,moderate and severe arsenism districts was 82,29 and 7,respectively.Totally 1 244 suspicious patients with endemic arsenism were discovered,and 3 473 light and more severe patients were discovered and the detected rate of light and more severe patients was 2.54％ (3 473/136 924).Most patient were not serious.Conclusions High arsenic areas and endemic arsenism areas are distributed in 15 counties of Shanxi Province.In the future primary task in prevention and control of endemic arsenism is comprehensive prevention and control measures.