235739 Secondary pesticide exposure from the fresh-cut flower industry and neurobehavioral development in children

Tuesday, November 1, 2011: 8:50 AM

Jose R. Suarez, MPH, MD , School of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
John Himes, PhD , School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
David Jacobs Jr., BS, PhD , School of Public Health, Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
Megan Gunnar, PhD , Institute Of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
Bruce H. Alexander, PhD , Regional Injury Prevention Research Center, Division of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
DeAnn Lazovich, PhD , Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
     
INTRODUCTION: Animal and human studies suggest that pesticide exposure in early childhood is harmful to neurodevelopment. We assessed the impact of secondary pesticide exposure on childhood neurobehavioral development in participants who lived in an Ecuadorian county with intense fresh-cut flower industry activity. METHODS: In the Effects of Secondary Pesticide Exposure in Infants, Children and Adolescents (ESPINA) study, parental interviews, child neurobehavioral development (NEPSY-II test) and acetylcholinesterase (AChE) quantification (EQM Testmate system) were conducted on 313 children aged 3-10 y. RESULTS: 55% of participants cohabited with ≥1 flower plantation workers (FW, mean duration= 5.3 years) and had a mean AChE concentration of 3.14 U/ml (standard deviation (SD): 0.49). The range of standardized scores among 13 NEPSY-II subtests was 5.9-10.9 units (SDs: 2.8-4.9). Children's cohabitation with a FW (vs. not) was associated with an Auditory Attention (AA) scaled score (SS) decrease of 1.13 units (95%CI 0.15-2.11), a decrease of 0.15 units (95%CI 0.30-0.01) per year of FW cohabitation and an odds ratio (OR) of 2.58 (95%CI 1.24-5.38) for low AA scores (SS≤6, ≤10th percentile), after adjustment for gender, age, race, hemoglobin concentration, height-for-age, maternal education, income and parish of residence. Participants with AChE concentrations in the lowest vs. the highest tertile had adjusted ORs of 3.27 (95%CI 1.32-8.12), 3.59 (95%CI 1.33-9.64) and 4.05 (1.02-16.16) for low Inhibition, Memory for Faces Delayed and Word List Interference Repetition scores, respectively. CONCLUSIONS FW cohabitation was associated with deficits on tasks that involve attention and executive functioning. Depressed AChE concentration was associated with deficits on tasks reflecting memory, attention and executive functioning. These are critical cognitive skills that affect learning and academic performance. Added precaution regarding secondary pesticide exposure in the Ecuadorian flower industry would be prudent.

Learning Areas:
Environmental health sciences
Occupational health and safety

Learning Objectives:
Assess the impact of secondary pesticide exposures, such as cohabitaion with a flower plantation worker, on childhood neurobehavioral development.

Keywords: Pesticide Exposure, Environmental Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the Principal Investigator of the ESPINA study.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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