TY  - JOUR
T1  - BLood mercury levels and neurobehavioral function
AU  - Weil M, Bressler J, Parsons P, Bolla K, Glass T, Schwartz B
Y1  - 2005/04/20
N1  - 10.1001/jama.293.15.1875
JO  - JAMA
SP  - 1875
EP  - 1882
VL  - 293
IS  - 15
N2  - Context 
                  Due to its cardiovascular benefits, fish consumption is widely encouraged
among older Americans. However, this fast-growing population is at increased
risk of cognitive impairment and may be particularly sensitive to methylmercury,
a neurotoxicant found in fish.Objective 
                  To describe associations of blood mercury levels with neurobehavioral
test scores in an urban adult population.Design, Setting, and Participants 
                  Cross-sectional analysis to determine the effect of mercury levels on
neurobehavior in 474 randomly selected participants in the Baltimore Memory
Study, a longitudinal study of cognitive decline involving 1140 Baltimore
residents aged 50 to 70 years. We measured total mercury in whole blood samples
and used multiple linear regression to examine its associations with neurobehavioral
test scores. First-visit data were obtained in 2001-2002.Main Outcome Measures 
                  Twenty scores from 12 neurobehavioral tests.Results 
                  The median blood mercury level was 2.1 μg/L (range, 0-16 μg/L).
After adjustment for covariates, increasing blood mercury was associated with
worse performance on Rey complex figure delayed recall, a test of visual memory
(β, −0.224; 95% confidence interval, −0.402 to −0.047).
However, increasing blood mercury levels were associated with better performance
on finger tapping, a test of manual dexterity (β for dominant hand, 0.351;
95% confidence interval, 0.017-0.686).Conclusion 
                  Overall, the data do not provide strong evidence that blood mercury
levels are associated with worse neurobehavioral performance in this population
of older urban adults.
SN  - 0098-7484
M3  - doi: 10.1001/jama.293.15.1875
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/jama.293.15.1875
ER  -