Claudia Hornberg - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Claudia Hornberg

5-6 % der Frauen machten hier keine Angabe. 2) 17 % der Frauen machten hier keine Angabe und weit... more 5-6 % der Frauen machten hier keine Angabe. 2) 17 % der Frauen machten hier keine Angabe und weitere 12 % gaben an, den Eintritt der Behinderung nicht zu wissen.

Science of The Total Environment, 2011

Background: Many poor in developing countries have turned to artisanal small-scale gold mining (A... more Background: Many poor in developing countries have turned to artisanal small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in an attempt to improve their situation. However, the mercury used to extract gold from ore is discharged in vaporized form into the environment, where it poses a hazard for human health. Methods: As part of an environmental epidemiological study in Mongolia-to evaluate the burden of environmental mercury contamination-urine, blood and hair samples were collected from residents of areas with or without mercury contamination. A total of 200 blood, urine and hair samples were analyzed for mercury and divided into three subgroups according to mercury content: (1) occupational exposure (high/medium); (2) environmental exposure (low); and (3) no exposure. Internal mercury distributions of the subgroups were compared using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U-test. The Chi-square test and likelihood ratio proportion were used to compare the findings with threshold limits. Results: The highest values and greatest differences were seen in the urine samples (pb 0.001, Kruskal-Wallis). The occupational group showing the highest exposure with a median mercury level of 4.36 μg/l (control group: 0.10 μg/l, p b 0.001), 7.18 μg/g creatinine and 12 results above the threshold limit HBM I (Human Biomonitoring I). Even participants from the low-exposure subgroup showed elevated mercury levels (median 2.88 μg/l urine and 2.98 μg/g creatinine, p b 0.001), with 10 individuals above the HBM I threshold limits. Discussion: The body burden resulting from the use of mercury in artisanal gold mining is high not only in the miners themselves, an increased mercury hazard was also found for inhabitants of mining areas who were not actively involved in mining. Public health support measures are urgently needed to alleviate the situation.

… American journal of …, 2008

Background: It is unclear which exposures may cause or modify the adverse effect of rapid weight ... more Background: It is unclear which exposures may cause or modify the adverse effect of rapid weight gain on fat mass development in term children whose birth weight is appropriate-for-gestational age (AGA). Objective: To determine which intrauterine or postnatal exposures increase the risk of or modify the effect of rapid weight gain on body fat percentage (BF%) and body mass index (BMI) trajectories between 2 and 6 y of age. Design: Term AGA singletons (n ҃ 370) from the German Multicenter Allergy Study (MAS-90), a longitudinal birth cohort study, with repeated anthropometric measurements until 6 y, and data on breastfeeding status, exposure to smoking during pregnancy, and maternal anthropometric and socioeconomic characteristics were included in this analysis. Results: A shorter gestation [multivariate-adjusted odds ratio (OR): 5.12; 95% CI: 2.22, 11.82; P ҃ 0.0001], being firstborn (OR: 2.01; 95% CI: 1.10, 3.69; P ҃ 0.02), and having been bottle-fed (OR: 3.02; 95% CI: 1.68, 5.43; P ҃ 0.0002) all significantly increased a child's risk of gaining weight rapidly, whereas a larger BMI at birth was protective (OR: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.38, 0.77; P ҃ 0.0006). Multilevel model analyses showed that rapid growers exposed to tobacco in utero subsequently gained more BF% between 2 and 6 y than did rapid growers who had not been exposed (␤ Ȁ SE: 0.78 Ȁ 0.28%/y; P ҃ 0.005). Similarly, change in BF% was greater in rapid growers with an overweight mother than in those with a normal-weight mother (1.01 Ȁ 0.30%/y; P ҃ 0.0007). Conclusions: The occurrence of rapid weight gain between birth and 2 y and the magnitude of its effect on BF% development in AGA children is influenced by both intrauterine and postnatal exposures.

5-6 % der Frauen machten hier keine Angabe. 2) 17 % der Frauen machten hier keine Angabe und weit... more 5-6 % der Frauen machten hier keine Angabe. 2) 17 % der Frauen machten hier keine Angabe und weitere 12 % gaben an, den Eintritt der Behinderung nicht zu wissen.

Science of The Total Environment, 2011

Background: Many poor in developing countries have turned to artisanal small-scale gold mining (A... more Background: Many poor in developing countries have turned to artisanal small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in an attempt to improve their situation. However, the mercury used to extract gold from ore is discharged in vaporized form into the environment, where it poses a hazard for human health. Methods: As part of an environmental epidemiological study in Mongolia-to evaluate the burden of environmental mercury contamination-urine, blood and hair samples were collected from residents of areas with or without mercury contamination. A total of 200 blood, urine and hair samples were analyzed for mercury and divided into three subgroups according to mercury content: (1) occupational exposure (high/medium); (2) environmental exposure (low); and (3) no exposure. Internal mercury distributions of the subgroups were compared using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U-test. The Chi-square test and likelihood ratio proportion were used to compare the findings with threshold limits. Results: The highest values and greatest differences were seen in the urine samples (pb 0.001, Kruskal-Wallis). The occupational group showing the highest exposure with a median mercury level of 4.36 μg/l (control group: 0.10 μg/l, p b 0.001), 7.18 μg/g creatinine and 12 results above the threshold limit HBM I (Human Biomonitoring I). Even participants from the low-exposure subgroup showed elevated mercury levels (median 2.88 μg/l urine and 2.98 μg/g creatinine, p b 0.001), with 10 individuals above the HBM I threshold limits. Discussion: The body burden resulting from the use of mercury in artisanal gold mining is high not only in the miners themselves, an increased mercury hazard was also found for inhabitants of mining areas who were not actively involved in mining. Public health support measures are urgently needed to alleviate the situation.

… American journal of …, 2008

Background: It is unclear which exposures may cause or modify the adverse effect of rapid weight ... more Background: It is unclear which exposures may cause or modify the adverse effect of rapid weight gain on fat mass development in term children whose birth weight is appropriate-for-gestational age (AGA). Objective: To determine which intrauterine or postnatal exposures increase the risk of or modify the effect of rapid weight gain on body fat percentage (BF%) and body mass index (BMI) trajectories between 2 and 6 y of age. Design: Term AGA singletons (n ҃ 370) from the German Multicenter Allergy Study (MAS-90), a longitudinal birth cohort study, with repeated anthropometric measurements until 6 y, and data on breastfeeding status, exposure to smoking during pregnancy, and maternal anthropometric and socioeconomic characteristics were included in this analysis. Results: A shorter gestation [multivariate-adjusted odds ratio (OR): 5.12; 95% CI: 2.22, 11.82; P ҃ 0.0001], being firstborn (OR: 2.01; 95% CI: 1.10, 3.69; P ҃ 0.02), and having been bottle-fed (OR: 3.02; 95% CI: 1.68, 5.43; P ҃ 0.0002) all significantly increased a child's risk of gaining weight rapidly, whereas a larger BMI at birth was protective (OR: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.38, 0.77; P ҃ 0.0006). Multilevel model analyses showed that rapid growers exposed to tobacco in utero subsequently gained more BF% between 2 and 6 y than did rapid growers who had not been exposed (␤ Ȁ SE: 0.78 Ȁ 0.28%/y; P ҃ 0.005). Similarly, change in BF% was greater in rapid growers with an overweight mother than in those with a normal-weight mother (1.01 Ȁ 0.30%/y; P ҃ 0.0007). Conclusions: The occurrence of rapid weight gain between birth and 2 y and the magnitude of its effect on BF% development in AGA children is influenced by both intrauterine and postnatal exposures.