Are Children Still at Risk for Lead Poisoning?

Background. The prevalence of elevated blood lead levels (EBLLs) has decreased nationally, creating challenges in identifying children at risk. Methods. In a community known to have lead hazards, we screened children with a field-administered capillary blood lead test and asked parents to complete a questionnaire about lead risk factors. Results. Of the 77 child-parent pairs screened with a blood lead test and a parental questionnaire, 4 had finger stick blood lead levels of >= 10 mu g/dL. Of these, one child had a confirmatory venous blood lead level > 10 mu g/dL (1.3%; 95% CI = 0.0%-4.7%), which is near the US prevalence but less than the historic prevalence for this region. A median of 2 risk factors for each of the environmental, behavioral, and knowledge/awareness domains were noted. Conclusions. Despite a low prevalence of children with EBLL, parental report suggested that approximately 29% of children had lead-based paint in their home environment.