EPHT Lead Indicator: Childhood blood lead testing

To see explanations, tables, graphs and maps for each measure, click on the measure name below.

Children Tested - Percentage and count of children tested for lead poisoning prior to age 3 by state, county and ZIP code.

 

Housing Age - Percentage and count of pre-1950 housing by state, county, ZIP code, census tract and block group.

 

Childhood Poverty - Percentage and count of children under age 5 living in poverty by state, county, ZIP code, census tract, block group.

 

Children Tested, Housing Age & Childhood Poverty - View all three measures listed above together

Or, click here to see the full EPHT report on Childhood Blood Lead Testing (pdf).

Information about Indicators: Indicators provide information about a population’s health status with respect to environmental factors when clear measurable links are not available.

For example, because the amount of lead in paint in older homes is difficult to measure, we use blood lead measurements in children to indicate both the lead paint hazard and the risk for childhood lead poisoning.

As part of the nationwide EPHT network implementation, work groups developed indicators and measures.

Guidelines were established for the collection of data and the calculation of measures in a nationally-consistent way (called Nationally Consistent Data and Measures, or NCDMs).

For more information about environmental health indicators from the CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/indicators/introduction.htm

Calculations: A birth year cohort is used to calculate the percentage of children with at least one blood lead test prior to age 36 months, by state, county and zip code. The 2000 census is used to calculate the percentage of children under 5 years old living in poverty and the percentage of pre-1950 housing units by state, county and ZIP code.

Time period: Calculation began with the 2001 birth cohort and is repeated for each succeeding birth cohort once those children reach 3 years of age. The time scale is annual with a three-year lag.

Data sources:

Oregon Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, Oregon Department of Human Services (DHS): http://www.oregon.gov/DHS/ph/lead/index.shtml

Center for Health Statistics (Vital Records), Oregon Department of Human Services: http://www.oregon.gov/DHS/ph/chs/change/index.shtml

U.S. Census Bureau, American FactFinder:

http://factfinder.census.gov/home/saff/main.html?_lang=en.