Mercury and health in Madre de Dios, Peru

Authors

  • Fernando Osores Plenge Universidad Ricardo Palma
  • J. Antonio Grández Urbina Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Biomédicas
  • Jorge L. Fernández Luque Instituto de Investigaciones en Ciencias Biomédicas

Keywords:

Mercury, Madre de Dios, mercury poisoning

Abstract

Mercury is an essential element for extracting gold from river beds in illegal gold mining in Madre de Dios Region in Peru. Water pollution by mercury has become a very serious public health problem for this area, because of the dissemination of this metal in the food chain and being humans the final destination of mercury. Exposure to this element in pregnant women may lead to chronic mercury poisoning, and fetuses and embryos may become irreversibly affected, with the occurrence of congenital neurological disorders.

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Published

2010-12-30

Issue

Section

REVIEW ARTICLE

How to Cite

1.
Mercury and health in Madre de Dios, Peru. Acta Med Peru [Internet]. 2010 Dec. 30 [cited 2024 Dec. 23];27(4):310-4. Available from: https://amp.cmp.org.pe/index.php/AMP/article/view/1422

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