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Dose-response meta-analysis of arsenic exposure in drinking water and intelligence quotient

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Abstract

Objectives

Exposure to inorganic arsenic through drinking water is a threat for public health. Using the arsenic-containing water in the long-term causes a variety of skin diseases, high blood pressure, and skin cancer. Arsenic also damages the nervous system. A wide range of studies have studied the effect of arsenic in drinking water on the level of intelligence in children.

Methods

For the purpose of our research, we searched three electronic databases including Scopus, Web of Science, and Medline (PubMed) in English from 2000 to January 2018. We used the dose-response meta-analysis through applying random effect models in order to estimate the pooled association (with a 95% uncertainty) between water arsenic concentration and intelligence level.

Results

Using a two-stage random effect model to investigate the dose-response association between arsenic concentration and Intelligence Quotient scale, we estimated a significant linear association as −0.08 (95% CI: −0.14, −0.01). Actually, for each unit increase in arsenic concentration (one microgram per liter), intelligence quotient scale decreases by 0.08%.

Conclusions

Considering the significance of the relationship between arsenic concentration in drinking water and the level of intelligence quotient as an important factor in training, the level of arsenic and its associated risks should be decreased in water resources.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to appreciate all those researchers who helped us toconduct this study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health and Nutrition, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran

    Mahsa Hasanvand, Nahid Khoshnamvand & Ali Jafari

  2. Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health and Nutrition, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran

    Rasool Mohammadi

  3. Department of Environmental Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Nahid Khoshnamvand

  4. Health Promotion Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Hossein Safari Palangi

  5. Cardiovascular Research Center, Shahid Rahimi Hospital, Lorestan University of Medical Sciences, Khorramabad, Iran

    Yaser Mokhayeri

Authors
  1. Mahsa Hasanvand
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  2. Rasool Mohammadi
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  3. Nahid Khoshnamvand
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  4. Ali Jafari
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  5. Hossein Safari Palangi
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Contributions

Mahsa Hasanvand: Methodology – Writing – original draft.

Nahid Khoshnamvand: Conceptualization – search & Methodology,

Rasool Mohammadi: Data Analysis-Writing – original draft.

Ali Jafari: Search & Methodology – Critical revision and editing of the manuscript.

Hossein Safari Palangi: Review & editing – Formal analysis.

Yaser Mokhayeri: Data Analysis – Writing – review & editing.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Nahid Khoshnamvand or Yaser Mokhayeri.

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Conflict of interest

The writers remark, that they have no special financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to affection the work reported in this study.

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Appendices

Appendix 1

Search Strategy in Pub Med:

(arsenic[Title/Abstract] OR arsenate[Title/Abstract] OR arsenite[Title/Abstract] OR arsenicosis[Title/Abstract] OR “arsenic exposure”[Title/Abstract] OR “arsenic poisoning”[Title/Abstract]) AND (Intelligence[Title/Abstract] OR IQ[Title/Abstract] OR “intelligence quotient”[Title/Abstract])

Search Strategy in Scopus:

(TITLE-ABS-KEY (arsenic OR arsenate OR arsenite OR arsenicosis OR “arsenic exposure” OR “arsenic poisoning”) AND TITLE-ABS-KEY (intelligence OR “children intelligence” OR iq OR “intelligence quotient”)) AND (LIMIT-TO (DOCTYPE, “cp”) OR LIMIT-TO (DOCTYPE, “ar”))

Search Strategy in Web of Science:

#2 AND #1

Refined by: DOCUMENT TYPES: (ARTICLE OR PROCEEDINGS PAPER OR MEETING ABSTRACT)

Indexes=SCI-EXPANDED, SSCI, CPCI-S, CPCI-SSH, ESCI Timespan=All years

#2 AND #1

Indexes=SCI-EXPANDED, SSCI, CPCI-S, CPCI-SSH, ESCI Timesp

an=All years

TS=(Intelligence or “children intelligence” or IQ or “intelligence quotient”)

Indexes=SCI-EXPANDED, SSCI, CPCI-S, CPCI-SSH, ESCI Timespan=All years

TS=(arsenic or arsenate or arsenite or arsenicosis or “arsenic exposure” or “arsenic poisoning”)

Indexes=SCI-EXPANDED, SSCI, CPCI-S, CPCI-SSH, ESCI Timespan=All years

Appendix 2

SD_control

14.7

21.4

29.5

6.98

11.34

20.3

28.5

SD_medium

15.6

22.6

28.2

  

17.3

 

SD_high

16.6

22.3

19.3

9.6

6.17

15.4

33

IQ_control

104.8

52.2

50

108.7

30.55

56.5

107

IQ_medium

100.6

43.8

38

  

45.1

 

IQ_high

95.1

40.7

27.5

97

17.95

39.4

109

Dose_control

2

9

60

6

2

59

2.37

Dose_medium

142

50

270

  

221

 

Dose_high

190

120

650

50.6

90

653

82

Sample size (control)

196

120

255

28

20

58

151

Sample size (medium)

253

96

112

  

47

 

Sample size(high)

91

96

41

114

20

25

152

Sample size

540

312

404

142

40

130

303

Sex

Both

Both

Both

Both

Both

Both

Both

YOP

2007

2014

2013

2017

2017

2012

2011

Country

Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Bangladesh

India

India

Bangladesh

Bangladesh

First author

San-Xiang Wang et al. [32]

Mst. Nasrin Nahar et al. [17]

Mst. Nasrin Nahar et al. [16]

Soumya Bikash Ghosh et al. [7]

Manju et al. [12]

Mst. Nasrin Nahar[15]

Gail A. Wasserman et al. [35]

ID

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

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Hasanvand, M., Mohammadi, R., Khoshnamvand, N. et al. Dose-response meta-analysis of arsenic exposure in drinking water and intelligence quotient. J Environ Health Sci Engineer 18, 1691–1697 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40201-020-00570-0

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