Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #113978

Anu Partap, MD MPH, MedPro Pediatrics, Arizona Center for Community Pediatrics, 2600 N Central Ave Suite 740, Phoenix, AZ 85004 and Kathleen Mathieson, PhD, Academic Affairs, Maricopa Integrated Health System, 2601 E. Roosevelt St., Phoenix, AZ 85008, 602-344-5427, Kathleen.Mathieson@hcs.maricopa.gov.

Background: The goals of this study were to 1) assess the validity of the questionnaire currently used by several Head Starts in Maricopa County (Phoenix, Arizona) to screen for lead poisoning risk, 2) pilot the application of fingerstick lead testing at health fairs, 3) describe the population that receives lead testing at a major Head Start health fair in Maricopa County, and 4) describe the prevalence of lead poisoning in children screened at a large Head Start health fair.

Methods: Data were collected from convenience samples at two large Head Start health fairs, one in 2003 (n=606) and one in 2004 (n=190).

Results: The screening questionnaire performed poorly; over 30% of parents had "don't know" or blank responses to all six questions and the questionnaire did not identify children with high blood lead levels. When one fingerstick was used for both anemia and lead testing, 30% of results were inconclusive due to an insufficient quantity of blood. Only 2 children out of 796 (.003%) had high lead levels (Ан10 ug/dl). When a separate fingerstick was used, however, only 2% of tests had an insufficient quantity.

90% of children tested were low-income, 68% had a history of Medicaid coverage, and 62% were from Spanish-speaking homes. Among Medicaid-eligible children, only 16 percent had been tested previously.

Conclusions: Fingerstick is a feasible method of blood lead testing, provided a fingerstick is done solely for lead testing. The screening questionnaire did not provide useful information to target testing among Head Start enrollees.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the efficacy of a lead screening tool to identify Head Start children who are at risk for lead toxicity.
• Understand the feasibility of fingerstick lead testing at large health fairs.
• Understand the population served at large Head Start health fairs in Maricopa County

Keywords: Children's Health, Environmental Health Hazards

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.