Primary Prevention

Primary Prevention

The lead poisoning rate in Milwaukee is five times the national incidence rate. Though Milwaukee and other cities across the U.S. have lead poisoning prevention programs, many of them only focus on providing services to children and their families after a child becomes poisoned. In 1994, the CDC, HUD, EPA and other federal agencies directed local health departments to shift toward primary prevention activities to impact on high incidence areas. That is, address the problem of lead-based paint before children are poisoned. At the same time, the federal government realized that cost-effective means for identifying and treating the problem were necessary in order to make the shift from secondary to primary prevention work.

HUD granted funding to eleven cities across the U.S. in order to identify the most cost-effective means to control hazardous lead-based paint. Milwaukee was one of the eleven cities included in this project. The research involved 252 units that were studied over a three year period. Since leaded dust was identified as the primary cause of childhood lead poisoning, it was was a centerpiece of the study. In Milwaukee alone, over 10,000 dust wipe samples were included to determine which methods controlled those hazards most effectively.

Although lead is found in soil and water as well as paint, most literature does not differentiate how much hazardous lead is accessible to children. The majority of dust wipes taken nationwide demonstrate that soil is probably not a major factor in lead poisoning in occupied housing. Both pre-abatement and post-abatement dust wipes on floors indicate no statistical difference in lead dust. Researchers also found that leaded surfaces are dangerous to children only when they are in a deteriorated state. Further, all grantees demonstrated a unique common factor - dusty window troughs. Due to the higher lead content in exterior window components, coupled with friction from opening and closing, windows easily produce the most lead dust.

As a result of preliminary wipes, demonstrating a clear danger at windows, our focus shifted from overall abatement to abatement at windows. The four levels of treatment were: cleaning, single track liners, double track liners and new windows. The double track liner is the most cost-effective treatment to make windows lead-safe.

In Milwaukee, for approximately $135 per window, owners can effectively create lead-safe housing. Compared to the costs of chelation of the severely lead poisoned child, or to the cost of treatment for multiple problems associated with lead poisoning, the costs of the double track liner abatement process is reasonable, effective and long-lasting.

For more information, call 414-286-5987.