Assessment of Neurophysiologic and Neurobehavioral Effects of Environmental Pollutants in 5- and 6-Year-Old Children
| Autor: | Gerhard Winneke, Lilo Altmann, Ursula Krämer, Herbert Wiegand, Karolina Sveinsson |
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| Rok vydání: | 1997 |
| Předmět: |
Male
medicine.medical_specialty Evaluation system Visual acuity media_common.quotation_subject Child Behavior Neuropsychological Tests Audiology Biochemistry Child Development Germany Psychophysics medicine Humans Child General Environmental Science media_common Pollutant medicine.diagnostic_test business.industry Neuropsychological test Child Preschool Finger tapping Evoked Potentials Visual Environmental Pollutants Female Pattern reversal stimulation medicine.symptom business Vigilance (psychology) |
| Zdroj: | Environmental Research. 73:125-131 |
| ISSN: | 0013-9351 |
| Popis: | To investigate the effects of environmental pollutants on neuronal functions in residents of different areas in Germany, a mobile laboratory was developed. The equipment permits the assessment of neurophysiologic as well as neurobehavioral parameters in epidemiologic studies. In two sets of field experiments in 1991 and 1994, more than 700 children, 5 and 6 years old, were tested in three different towns in East and West Germany. Visual functions were measured neurophysiologically by visually evoked potentials, using pattern reversal stimulation. By means of psychophysical methods, the contrast sensitivity was tested and the visual acuity assessed. Finger tapping, simple reaction time, vigilance, pattern comparison, pattern memory, and memory of geometric figures were measured using the Neurobehavioral Evaluation System (NES1 and NES2). In a preliminary analysis, the outcomes of the tests were related to the children's blood lead levels. The experiences with the field studies showed that all tests could be successfully performed even in pre-school-age children. The mobile laboratory has proven to be a useful tool for the detection of neurotoxic effects of environmental pollutants in larger populations, providing the opportunity for flexible operation at different locations. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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