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Minnesota Department of Health News ReleaseMarch 23, 2006 Child’s death from lead poisoning prompts recall and warning about children’s jewelry The death of a child from extreme lead poisoning has prompted federal and state health officials to issue new warnings about the dangers of children’s jewelry and toys that contain lead. In a special edition of its Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) that will be issued today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports on the case of a preschool-age Minnesota child who died from lead-induced brain swelling after swallowing a piece of metallic jewelry containing high levels of lead. The Minnesota Department of Health and local health officials were instrumental in investigating the child’s death and assisting federal officials in their investigation. The item was a heart-shaped charm on a bracelet that came as a promotional item with a pair of Reebok athletic shoes. Laboratory analysis of the charm from the child indicated it contained 99 percent lead. A look-alike charm from the same brand of shoes was purchased by local health officials; that charm contained 68 percent lead, according to the same laboratory test. The Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) safety threshold for lead content in jewelry is 0.06% (600 ppm). Both the CDC and Minnesota Department of Health are urging parents and caregivers to make sure that small children do not put small objects, particularly metal objects, in their mouths. The child’s case has resulted in a recall by Reebok and another company that sold children’s jewelry to various outlets, according to the CPSC. Information on the recall can be found on the CPSC Web site. In conducting their investigation of the child’s death, state lead prevention program officials found two models of shoes, the Reebok Disco Queen II Casual Running Shoe Preschool and the Reebok Classic Leather Reptile Preschool, advertised on a Web site with pictures of charms matching the charm from the child. Reebok and the CPSC say various models of shoes are involved in the recall. It is not clear how many of the shoes remain on store shelves in Minnesota. The items are no longer listed on the Reebok Web site or are listed as out of stock, and inquiries by MDH staff to more than 30 stores indicated the product was no longer on store shelves. “However, we also do not know how many of these charms may be lying around families’ homes, posing a potentially serious health hazard for children,” said Dr. Harry Hull, state epidemiologist. “We’re very pleased that these companies have decided to issue a recall. “Consumers who have purchased shoes or other products with metallic charm bracelets should keep them away from small children, especially infants and toddlers who often place items in their mouths,” Hull said. “In fact, I would urge them to simply dispose of the charms, to be safest. Any retailers who may have these items still in stock should get them off the shelves to protect consumers.” The department also wants health care providers, especially primary care physicians and emergency room physicians, to be aware that, while rare, acute lead poisoning can still happen and to look for it in certain circumstances. Health care providers should consider lead poisoning in young children who present with symptoms of increased intracranial pressure, unexplained and prolonged gastric symptoms and/or a history of mouthing or ingesting non-food items. “Care givers should be warned against allowing children to mouth any metal objects,” according to the MMWR authors. “Given what is already known about the types of consumer products which can contain high levels of lead, it is critical to proactively work to prevent exposure of children to these potentially hazardous products. Ingestion of these seemingly innocuous products can have fatal consequences. Restriction or elimination of nonessential uses of lead in consumer products before children are exposed is a critical part of preventing and eliminating childhood lead poisoning.” Despite the seriousness of this case, lead poisoning resulting from consumer products is not a common source of lead exposure for children. “Childhood lead poisoning is most frequently the result of exposure to deteriorating lead paint or lead dust in housing built before 1978,” said Dan Symonik, manager of the lead prevention program at MDH. However, some areas of the United States report that up to 35 percent of children identified with elevated blood lead levels (BLL) were exposed to items decorated or made with lead. The decline in elevated blood lead levels in the U.S. children, widespread education of the dangers of lead paint and systematic reduction of lead hazards in U.S. housing have made it more likely that life-threatening BLLs are the result of direct ingestion of lead-containing items. The CPSC has issued product recalls for several types of children’s toys or jewelry that have been manufactured with high lead content during the last few years. For information on items that have been recalled, see the CPSC Web site. The CPSC has also established a policy on lead in children’s metal jewelry. To find out more about preventing childhood lead poisoning, see the MDH Web site. -MDH-
For more information, contact: Doug Schultz Dr. Harry Hull
Daniel Symonik
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