Project 3: Community Based Research Project 8211 - Identifying Residential Hazards Using Home Test Kits
Investigator: Sandy Roda, BA
Project Period: 10-1-2001 through 6-30-2006
Objectives / Hypothesis
Numerous environmental agents have been linked to adverse neurobehavioral effects in children. Unfortunately, it is costly and difficult for families to determine if their home environment is safe for young children. This is a major concern for agencies such as the Better Housing League, whose mission is to make safe housing available to low-income families.
The purpose of this project is to help families and communities identify and reduce health risks from lead, pesticides, and ultimately, other environmental hazards. We have partnered with the Better Housing League in Cincinnati and nationally with the Alliance to End Childhood Lead Poisoning and the National Center for Healthy Housing. The first specific aim of this project is to test tools for families to assess levels of contaminants in their home environment. This aim will strengthen right-to-know laws by providing families with tools to assess environmental contamination in their own homes. The second aim is to increase community awareness of the role of environmental agents in developmental disorders, hearing loss and school problems. We hypothesize that:
- The predictive validity of home sampling kits to identify children who have blood lead concentration > 10 mg/dL collected by families is not significantly different than repeat samples taken by trained, community workers.
- The group receiving video instruction about use of the home sampling kit will have environmental lead levels more consistent with trrained workers than those in the group receiving written instructions only.
Approach
- A pesticide wipe sampling kit will be developed to accompany the lead-sampling kit.
- Researchers will evaluate the predictive validity of home sampling kits for lead-contaminated floor dust to identify children who have blood lead levels of 10 mg/dL or higher by community participants compared with repeat samples taken by trained community workers, and evaluate the reliability of home sampling kits for pesticides in dust collected by community participants compared with trained community workers.
- Data will be disseminated on the reliability of home sampling tests and provide tools for families to collect environmental samples for large, population-based studies.
- A Healthy Homes Resource Center at the Better Housing League will be established to disseminate information to the community about residential hazards.
Expected Results
The project would provide tools for families and communities to identify environmental neurotoxins and disseminate information by establishing the Healthy Home Resource Center at the Better Housing League. The results of this project would also stimulate community - wide prevention efforts and exposure assessment by participants in population-based studies.
