0
Article |

Pica and Elevated Blood Lead Level in Autistic and Atypical Children FREE

Barbara K. Caparulo; Warren T. Johnson; Donald J. Cohen, MD
[+] Author Affiliations

Received for publication Sept 17, 1974; accepted Jan 2, 1975.

Reprint requests to 333 Cedar St, New Haven, CT 06510 (Dr Cohen).


Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 1976;130(1):47-48. doi:10.1001/archpedi.1976.02120020049007
Text Size: A A A
Published online

• Children with severely atypical development often display pica, habitual mouthing, and odd food preferences as symptoms from the first year of life. Such children can ingest dangerous amounts of lead even in environments that are usually considered safe. Mean blood lead concentration was notably higher in 18 autistic children than in 16 nonautistic psychotic children or in ten normal siblings. Fifteen (44%) of the psychotic children (autistic and nonautistic) had blood lead levels greater than two standard deviations above the mean for normal controls. Behavioral and neurological sequelae of elevated blood lead level may be obscured in severely disorganized children. Screening for blood lead should be part of the medical care of these vulnerable children with pica.

(Am J Dis Child 130:47-48, 1976)

REFERENCES

Cohen DJ:  The medical care of autistic children . Pediatrics 51:278-280, 1973;.
Cohen DJ, Shaywitz BA, Johnson WJ, et al:  CSF biogenic amines in autistic and atypical children . Arch Gen Psychiatry 31:845-853, 1974;.
Hollingshead AB: Two Factor Index of Social Position . New Haven, Yale University Press, 1957;.
Kanner L:  Autistic disturbances of affective contact . Nervous Child 2:217-250, 1943;.
Lotter V:  Epidemiology of autistic conditions in young children: Some characteristics of the parents and children . Soc Psychiatry 1:163-173, 1967;.
Zinterhoffer L, Jatlow PI, Fappiano A:  Atomic absorption determination of lead in blood and urine in the presence of EDTA . J Lab Clin Med 78:664-674, 1971;.
Needleman HL:  Lead poisoning in children: Neurologic implications of widespread subclinical intoxication . Semin Psychiatry 5:47-54, 1973;.

First Page Preview

First page PDF preview

Figures

Tables

Interactive Graphics

Video

Country-Specific Mortality and Growth Failure in Infancy and Yound Children and Association With Material Stature

Use interactive graphics and maps to view and sort country-specific infant and early dhildhood mortality and growth failure data and their association with maternal

Cohen DJ:  The medical care of autistic children . Pediatrics 51:278-280, 1973;.
Cohen DJ, Shaywitz BA, Johnson WJ, et al:  CSF biogenic amines in autistic and atypical children . Arch Gen Psychiatry 31:845-853, 1974;.
Hollingshead AB: Two Factor Index of Social Position . New Haven, Yale University Press, 1957;.
Kanner L:  Autistic disturbances of affective contact . Nervous Child 2:217-250, 1943;.
Lotter V:  Epidemiology of autistic conditions in young children: Some characteristics of the parents and children . Soc Psychiatry 1:163-173, 1967;.
Zinterhoffer L, Jatlow PI, Fappiano A:  Atomic absorption determination of lead in blood and urine in the presence of EDTA . J Lab Clin Med 78:664-674, 1971;.
Needleman HL:  Lead poisoning in children: Neurologic implications of widespread subclinical intoxication . Semin Psychiatry 5:47-54, 1973;.

Correspondence

CME Course for:


You need to register in order to view this quiz.


To understand the clinical management of acute heart failure syndromes.
Accreditation Information The American Medical Association is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
The AMA designates this journal-based CME activity for a maximum of 1 AMA PRA Category 1 CreditTM per course. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Physicians who complete the CME course and score at least 80% correct on the quiz are eligible for AMA PRA Category 1 CreditTM.
Note: You must get at least of the answers correct to pass this quiz.
Note: You must get at least of the answers correct to pass this quiz.
You have not filled in all the answers to complete this quiz
The following questions were not answered:
Sorry, you have unsuccessfully completed this CME quiz with a score of
The following questions were not answered correctly:
For CME Course: A Proposed Model for Initial Assessment and Management of Acute Heart Failure Syndromes
Indicate what changes(s) you will implement in your practice, if any, based on this CME course.
To view and print your certificate and access a summary of your CME courses go to My CME.
NOTE:
Citing articles are presented as examples only. In non-demo SCM6 implementation, integration with CrossRef’s “Cited By” API will populate this tab (http://www.crossref.org/citedby.html).
Submit a Comment

Some tools below are only available to our subscribers or users with an online account.

Related Content

Customize your page view by dragging & repositioning the boxes below.