Table 7.
Epidemiological Studies of MeHg and Cardiovascular Risks
| Population | Study Type | Exposure Measure (Mean) | Outcome Measure and Findings | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finland, men aged 42–60, n=1,833 | KIHD prospective cohort (6 yr follow up) | Hair mercury (1.9 ug/g) | AMI and BP: RR 1.96 acute coronary events (MI, CHD/CVD death); Hg second strongest predictor of IMT (carotid atherosclerosis) after systolic BP | Salonen et al. 1995 |
| Faroes Islands children (birth and 7 yrs) n=1,000 | Prospective cohort study (7 yr follow up) | Cord blood mercury | BP and HRV: BP increase and HRV decrease (boys) with Hg level; prenatal Hg may affect CVD homeostasis | Sorensen et al. 1999 |
| Finland, men n=1,084 | KIHD prospective cohort, (4 yr follow up) | Hair mercury (1.8 ug/g) | BP: Hg associated with IMT (progression of carotid atherosclerosis) | Salonen et al. 2000 |
| Finland, men n=1,871 | KIHD prospective cohort (10 yr follow up) | Hair mercury (1.9 ug/g) | AMI: High hair Hg attenuated benefits of PUFAs on CVD risk | Rissanen et al. 2000 |
| Sweden, men and women, n=78 cases and 156 controls | Nested case control (1.7 yrs) | Erythrocyte mercury (4.4–5.4 ng/g) | AMI: Did not find association with first myocardial infarction | Hallgren et al. 2001 |
| Eight EU countries, Israel, men n=684 cases, 724 controls | EURAMIC case control | Toenail mercury (0.25 ug/g controls; 0.29 ug/g cases) | AMI: 2.16 OR of first myocardial infarction associated with highest compared to lowest quintile Hg | Guallar et al. 2002 |
| United States, men n=470 cases and 474 controls (63% dentists) | US Health Professionals Follow up nested case control study | Toenail Hg (0.72–0.74 ug/g; 0.45 ug/g non-dentists, 0.91 ug/g dentists) | AMI: No increased risks comparing cases to control when dentists included in controls; 1.27 RR when dentists excluded, 1.7 when adjusted for PUFAs | Yoshizawa et al. 2002 |
| Finland, men n=1,871 | KIHD cohort (13.9 yr follow up) | Hair mercury (1.9 ug/g) | AMI: Highest one-third (over 2.0 ppm hair Hg) ~1.6-fold risk lowest one-third acute coronary event | Virtanen et al. 2005 |
| United States, reproductive age (16–49) women n=1,245 | NHANES cross-sectional study | Blood mercury (1 ug/g), 30-day fish consumption (avg 2.9 meals) | CVD risk markers: 30-day fish negatively associated with C-reactive protein and positively with HDL cholesterol | Smith et al. 2008 |
| Faroes Islands whaling men aged 30–70 yrs) n=42 | Clinical study | Toenail and blood mercury (toenail 2 ug/g; hair 6 ug/g) | BP: Increased BP and IMT associated with mercury level; toenail Hg highly correlated with hair Hg | Choi et al. 2009 |
| Japan men and women n=54 (experiment and control) | Intervention study | Hair mercury (control 2.1 ug/g; experiment 2.3–8.8 ug/g) | HRV: Significantly (reversibly) altered after 14 wk exposure at UN reference rate; PTWI not CVD protective | Yaginuma-Sakurai et al. 2009 |
| Canada, Nunavik Inuit men and women n=732 | Qanuippitaa population cross sectional | Blood mercury (50.2 nmol/L) | BP: Hg associated with increasing systolic and diastolic BP | Valera et al. 2009 |
| Japan, Minamata (n=833), Goshonoura (n=1,450), Araike (n=755) men and women | Retrospective (1971 population based survey) | Residence area and hair mercury | BP: Prevalence of hypertension higher in Minamata than Araike, OR 1.4–1.6 for hypertension, increasing dose-response trend | Yorifuji et al. 2010 |