Occupational blood lead survey--Armenia, 1991 and 1993

The risk for lead exposure and lead poisoning is a persistent problem for some workers (1) and is an important issue in both industrialized and developing countries (2). In Armenia, where lead is used widely in industry (3), the Armenian Engineers and Scientists of America, Inc. (AESA), and the United Armenian Fund (UAF)* initiated a program in 1991 to use blood lead determinations to investigate lead exposures, identify industries and circumstances associated with lead hazards, and define specific jobs characterized by excessive exposures that increase the risk for lead poisoning of workers. In 1991, team investigators surveyed four factories that use lead; in 1993, one of the factories was resurveyed. Because the capacity of laboratories in Armenia to reliably determine blood lead levels (BLLs) is limited, blood specimens were transported to the United States for lead testing. This report presents the findings of both surveys and establishes the feasibility of sample collection at remote sites for transport to laboratories equipped and certified to process lead specimens.