Since 1992, in Baden-Württemberg, ten-year old children have been surveyed in the project "Sentinel Health Departments" to study their exposure to environmental pollutants and possible health effects. In the four study areas 1200 children have been investigated every year initially, since 1996 every second year. The data for mercury in body fluids are reported here. The decrease in the body burden of mercury as a result of the declining usage of dental amalgam fillings, was been verified. In 1992/93, of all the children who had been surveyed, the 95 percentile for the body burden of mercury was 3.1 microg/l and in 2000/01 1.35 microg/l. Also to be discussed is the reason why mercury-based cosmetic ointments seriously exceed the HBM-II-intervention-value. Because of using these ointments, concentrations of mercury in urine up to 1400 microg/l were found. A study within the project "Sentinel Health Departments" compared the concentrations of mercury in the urine of adults with those in blood and salvia. The results support the opinion that mercury in urine is appropriate for estimating the mercury uptake from dental amalgam fillings. It can be assumed that these results reflect the situation in the entire Federal Republic of Germany. The ten years' experience confirms that the concept of the "Sentinel Health Departments" is excellently suited to obtain data relevant for environmental health of children. Environmental health protection and the essential gathering of data for future health observation in Baden-Württemberg.

Mit der Fragestellung, welche Rolle die Belastung mit biogenen Innenraumallergenen für Allergien und Atemwegserkrankungen spielt, wurden in einer Fall-Kontrollstudie (Atopiker und Nichtatopiker) im Winterhalbjahr 1999/2000 an den vier Beobachtungsgesundheitsämtern in Baden-Württemberg bei 379 Kindern der vierten Klasse in den Wohnungen die Konzentration der Hausstaubmilbenallergene Der f1, Der p1 und Gruppe-2-Milbenallergene bzw. des Katzenallergens Fel d1 im Boden- und Matratzenstaub bestimmt. Außerdem wurde die Bestimmung von spezifischen IgE-Antikörpern gegen Hausstaub-, Milben- und Katzenallergene im Serum der Kinder durchgeführt. Im Bodenstaub wurden folgende Medianwerte (µg/g) ermittelt: Der p1 = 0,6, Der f1 = 2,3, Gruppe-2-Milbenallergene = 0,1; im Matratzenstaub: Der p1 = 1,2, Der f1 = 3,4, Gruppe-2-Milbenallergene = 0,3. Der Medianwert für Fel d1 im Bodenstaub lag bei 0,2 µg/g und im Matratzenstaub bei 0,1 µg/g. Bei der Bestimmung spezifischer IgE wurde eine höhere Sensibilisierungsrate gegen Hausstaubmischung als gegen Katzenallergene beobachtet. Der Anteil positiver Ergebnisse für Hausstaubmischung (HX-2) betrug im Gesamtkollektiv 24,8 %, bei den Atopikern 32,9 % und bei den Nichtatopikern 17,1 %. Für den e1-Test (Katzenallergen) betrug der Anteil positiver Ergebnisse im Gesamtkollektiv 8,5 %, bei den Atopikern 13,1 % und bei den Nichtatopikern 4,1 %. Aus den vorliegenden Ergebnissen ist kein direkter Zusammenhang zwischen der Häufigkeit von Allergien bzw. Atemwegserkrankungen und der Belastung mit Innenraumallergenen erkennbar. Mögliche Ursachen für diesen Sachverhalt werden diskutiert.

Elevated levels of moulds in homes may represent a risk for development of allergies and respiratory diseases. Little is known about the levels of these biogenic contaminants in homes in South-West Germany. This paper presents the results of a study which was performed between November 1997 and May 1998 in the four Sentinel Health Departments in Baden-Württemberg (Stuttgart, Mannheim, Kehl and Aulendorf/Bad Waldsee). It included 377 households in which children of 10 years of age resided. Moulds were determined in indoor air, outdoor air, household dust from floors and mattresses. Specific home characteristics were assessed by questionnaire. The median value of the number of colony forming units (CFU) in indoor air was 135 CFU/m3 (range 5-17,000) and in outdoor air 145 CFU/m3 (range 15-2,900). The median value of CFU/g dust, collected from the floors, was 15,000 (range 0-700,000) and collected from mattresses was 28,000 (range 1,500-1,350,000). The data suggest that an indoor-outdoor difference exceeding the value of 500 CFU/m3 indicates an elevated mould concentration in indoor air compared to background. This value can be discussed as a temporary reference value for South-West Germany in the winter season. However, a health assessment can not be derived from this value.

Elevated levels of moulds in homes may represent a risk for development of allergies and respiratory diseases. Little is known about the levels of these biogenic contaminants in homes in South-West Germany. This paper presents the results of a study which was performed between November 1997 and May 1998 in the four Sentinel Health Departments in Baden-Wurttemberg (Stuttgart, Mannheim, Kehl and Aulendorf/Bad Waldsee). It included 377 households in which children of 10 years of age resided. Moulds were determined in indoor air, outdoor air, household dust from floors and mattresses. Specific home characteristics were assessed by questionnaire.The median value of the number of colony forming units (CFU) in indoor air was 135 CFU/m(3) (range 5-17,000) and in outdoor air 145 CFU/m(3) (range 15-2,900). The median value of CFU/g dust, collected from the floors, was 15 000 (range 0-700,000) and collected from mattresses was 28 000 (range 1.500-1,350,000).The data suggest that an indoor-outdoor difference exceeding the value of 500 CFU/m(3) indicates an elevated mould concentration in indoor air compared to background. This value can be discussed as a temporary reference value for South-West Germany in the winter season. However, a health assessment can not be derived from this value.

Within the framework of a project entitled "Observation by Public Health Offices" we discovered a strikingly high mercury concentration of 30 micrograms in the urine of a 10-year old girl from an Albanian family formerly residing in the Kosovo area in Serbia. We investigated into the cause of this mercury load and found that it was also present in other members of the same family. Symptoms of mercury poisoning were evident to varying degrees in individual family members. Ultimately, we traced the source to a bleaching ointment containing mercury. On analysing the same we found a mercury content of 389 mg per g ointment. The use of this ointment with its extremely high mercury content had also contaminated the living-rooms.