Table 1.

Descriptive statistics for key questions in a survey of BLLs^a and items in the MDCH clinical BLL database: Michigan, October 2001–January 2003

^aWhile many of the survey questions were based on CDC questions, the exact wording was often different from the original CDC wording.

^bAll variables, except pacifier use, are dichotomous, and the mean is the percentage of those with nonmissing responses who answered affirmatively. Pacifier use is coded 0 for “never or almost never” (74.7% of respondents), 0.5 for “sometimes” (8.0% of respondents), and 1 for “daily or almost daily” (16.0% of respondents).

^cThese compound questions were each originally asked as several separate questions and the answers were then combined for data analysis.

BLL = blood lead level

MDCH = Michigan Department of Community Health

CDC = Centers for Disease Control and Prevention