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[Effects on infantile nerve development]
2.10 Effects on infantile nerve development [Summary]
Literature survey concerning epidemiology of endocrine
disruptors and infantile nerve development was performed.
Searching the PubMed database retrieved 22 reports, including
one on Japanese yusho victims, published up to Dec. 31, 2000.
Additional 17 papers (14 cohort studies, 1 synchronic study, 1
case-control study and 1 ecological study) appeared between Jan.
1, 2001 and Oct. 31, 2004, which included none on Japanese
subjects. Many studies indicate effects of prenatal exposure to
PCBs or dioxins on the nerve development in infancy, and suggest
that such effects may be modified by nutrients in breast milk or
stimulations from the environment. While prenatal exposure to
pesticides is also suggested to impair the development of the
body, nerve system and cognitive capability of children, the
variety in timing and method of measurement of data presented
prevents adequate evaluation of the dose-effect relationship or
causality. It is recommended to perform prospective studies for
global evaluation of risks of chemical agents (PCBs, dioxins,
etc.) as well as living environment which may affect the
development of children's nerve system.
[Purpose]
Organochlorine compounds, such as PCBs and dioxins, have been
suggested to affect brain and nerve system development of
fetuses and infants in which the blood-brain barrier is
immature. This may influence the cognition, movement and
behavior of affected children, possibly leading to
attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) or learning
disorder (LD), but the causality has not been established.
Literature was reviewed to find epidemiologic studies on
association of organochlorine compounds or other substances with
infantile nerve development.
[Method]
The PubMed database (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi)
provided by National Library of Medicine was searched with a
strategy "child AND (behavior OR development OR neurology) AND
(insecticides OR pesticides OR chlorinated hydrocarbons OR pcbs
OR phenol OR phthalate OR styrene OR furan OR organotin OR
diethylstilbestrol OR ethinyl estradiol) AND (human)". From
among the citations retrieved up to Oct. 31, 2004, original
papers reporting epidemiologic studies on human populations were
selected, and, as necessary, other articles cited in these
papers or reviews were added.
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