{"id":1774,"date":"2008-06-01T10:11:37","date_gmt":"2008-06-01T14:11:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ehealth.cooperhealth.org\/?p=1774"},"modified":"2008-06-01T10:11:37","modified_gmt":"2008-06-01T14:11:37","slug":"new-study-could-change-future-of-lead-testing-in-children","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cooperhealth.org\/ehealth\/2008\/06\/01\/new-study-could-change-future-of-lead-testing-in-children\/","title":{"rendered":"New Study Could Change Future of Lead Testing in Children"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"New<\/a>Are you harboring worries about the recent toy re-calls and your children\u2019s possible exposure to lead? Do your children receive care from a Cooper pediatrician? If so, you can have your children lead-tested for free\u2014and contribute to medical science at the same time.<\/p>\n

The Children\u2019s Regional Hospital at Cooper currently is enrolling Cooper pediatric patients between the ages of 9 months and 6 years in a study to detect levels of lead in children through a new type of test using saliva instead of blood.<\/p>\n

The research is the first of its kind in the country and could change the future of lead testing in children. Research clearly shows that even very low levels of lead exposure in children can lead to IQ deficits, learning disabilities and behavioral problems.<\/p>\n

\u201cCurrently, blood levels are widely accepted as the gold standard for estimating lead exposure and benchmarking its health effects,\u201d said April M. Douglas-Bright, M.D., principal investigator on the study and Division Head of General Pediatrics at Cooper.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnfortunately, because of the ever-present fear of having blood drawn, many at-risk children are not having samples obtained for lead exposure as they should,\u201d Dr. Douglas-Bright said.<\/p>\n

The purpose of the study is to find out if a saliva test for lead levels (called a buccal swab\u2014a swab of the mouth and gum line) is as accurate as the standard blood test for lead levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we are able to show through statistical analysis that there is no difference between venous and buccal swab saliva lead levels, we can eliminate this barrier (of fear) with a much less invasive procedure, and increase the compliance and testing of all children at risk,\u201d Dr. Douglas-Bright said.<\/p>\n

Cooper hopes to enroll 500 children between the ages of 9 months and 6 years who currently receive care from Cooper pediatricians and are in need of lead screening. These children will have both the buccal swab saliva test and the venous (blood) test for lead. Tests will be administered at Cooper\u2019s Camden campus.<\/p>\n

Venous samples will be processed in the normal manner at the Cooper University Hospital laboratory, and the buccal samples will be processed and shipped to a central testing facility. The lead levels in both samples will be analyzed for statistical correlation.<\/p>\n

For further information about the study, visit www.cooperhealth.org\/research<\/a>. The study\u2019s name is \u201cThe Correlation of Same-Visit Saliva Tests with Venous Blood Measurements for the Detection of Lead Exposure in Children.\u201d<\/p>\n

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