Impacts of arsenic exposure through drinking water on pigment disorders: A meta-analysis and a Bayesian benchmark...

Skin lesions are an early and distinct symptom of waterborne arsenic poisoning, while pigment disorder is the first symptom of skin lesions. Therefore, an in-depth analysis of the association between pigment disorders and arsenic concentration in drinking water can be used as a basis for the development of arsenic drinking water standards. However, it remains unclear whether arsenic primarily causes depigmentation or hyperpigmentation, and what dose of arsenic is safe with respect to skin symptoms.

A meta-analysis was performed using Stata 17.0 software. PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), VIP Chinese Journal Service Platform, and Wanfang Data databases were searched up to December 1, 2024. The Bayesian benchmark dose (BBMD) analysis system was used to estimate the benchmark dose (BMD) and its lower confidence limit (BMDL).

Twelve articles with 36, 670 observations were included. The meta-analysis results indicated that arsenic exposure through drinking water was associated with pigment disorders, with hyperpigmentation being the most common manifestation. The BBMD results suggested that BMDs for the association between arsenic concentrations in drinking water and pigment disorders were determined to be 4.93 μg/L (BMDL1 = 4.85 μg/L), 6.54 μg/L (BMDL5 = 6.19 μg/L), 8.41 μg/L (BMDL10 = 7.80 μg/L) when using BMRs of 1 %, 5 %, and 10 %.

Hyperpigmentation is the most common manifestation caused by drinking water arsenic exposure and may link to keratoses and skin cancer. Arsenic in drinking water over 7.80 μg /L raises 10 % risk of pigment disorders, which can also lead to more severe keratosis and skin cancer. Based on these findings, three interim targets are proposed, providing a basis for the establishment of stricter arsenic limits in drinking water.