Blood lead levels of 253 Delhi children were estimated by dithizone method. In 82 (controls) children with no symptoms mean blood lead level was 9.6 micrograms/dl (+/- SD 6.8: median 10 micrograms); only 6 had high levels between 30-33 micrograms/dl. In 88 children with pica, the mean blood lead level was 23.0 micrograms/dl (+/- SD 13.82; median 17 micrograms) which was significantly higher than the control; 26 had high levels between 30-92 micrograms/dl. Sixteen children with pica and surma-use and 46 children suspected of lead poisoning showed lead level patterns like the pica group. However, 21 surma-using children without pica resembled the control group. Children with pica were significantly more anemic than the controls and showed higher prevalence of abdominal-neurological symptoms. Because, in India, blood lead cannot be estimated in most of the hospitals, it is suggested that children with severe pica, anemia, abdominal-neurological symptoms and exposure to surma or lead, be suspected of lead poisoning, kept in lead-free environment with corrected nutrition, and be given a short cautious therapeutic trial with oral penicillamine.

Adolescent↗

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Late inflammatory swelling by carrageenan in rat's subcutaneous neck tissue.

When injected subcutaneously in the dorsum of neck in albino rats, carrageenan produced inflammatory swelling which reached peak after about 16 hr. The occurrence of the peak inflammatory swelling was delayed but not significantly reduced in severity by aspirin or indomethacin which were administered repeatedly. Phenylbutazone significantly reduced and dexamethasone almost completely inhibited it. In rat hind paw model, subplantar carrageenan injection produced peak inflammatory swelling after about 4 hr which was significantly reduced by all anti-inflammatory drugs mentioned above. It is interesting that an inflammagen when injected at different sites in the same species elicits responses which differ in the time course and drug responses.

Animals↗

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