Profile of Subjective Complaints and Activities of Daily Living among Current Patients with Minamata Disease after 3 Decades

• Published in: Environmental research Vol. 63; no. 2; pp. 241 - 251
• Main Authors: Kinjo, Y., Higashi, H., Nakano, A., Sakamoto, M., Sakai, R.
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Inc 01.11.1993; Elsevier
• Subjects: 551000 - Physiological Systems; 560300 - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology; Activities of Daily Living; Adult; AGE DEPENDENCE; Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES; Biological and medical sciences; BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS; Case-Control Studies; CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM; CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM AGENTS; chemically induced; complications; CONTAMINANTES; disease surveys; DRUGS; ENCUESTAS SANITARIAS; ENFERMEDADES TRANSM POR ALIMENTOS; ENQUETE PATHOLOGIQUE; ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE; EPIDEMIOLOGY; Female; Follow-Up Studies; FOOD CHAINS; Food toxicology; foodborne illness; Humans; Japan; Japan - epidemiology; JAPON; MALADIE TRANSMISSIBLE PAR ALIMENT; Male; Medical sciences; Mercury Poisoning; Mercury Poisoning - complications; METHYLMERCURY; methylmercury compounds; Middle Aged; NERVOUS SYSTEM; Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases - chemically induced; Nervous System Diseases - epidemiology; ORGANIC COMPOUNDS; ORGANIC MERCURY COMPOUNDS; POLLUANT; POLLUTION DE L'EAU; POLUCION DEL AGUA; Prevalence; QUALITY OF LIFE; RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT; REFLEXES; Surveys and Questionnaires; Time Factors; Toxicology; water pollution; Asia; Japan; Human; Senescence; Questionnaire; Long term; Heavy metal; Marine environment; Pollutant; Symptomatology; Follow up study; Delayed toxicity; Minamata disease; Age; Contaminant; Food
• ISSN: 0013-9351; 1096-0953
• DOI: 10.1006/enrs.1993.1144

We surveyed 1144 current patients with Minamata disease (MD) aged 40 or over in the Minamata area and the same number of neighbor controls matched with age and sex by questionnaire interview with regard to subjective complaints and activities of daily living (ADL). From analysis of subjective complaints, it was found that MD patients had significantly higher rates of all complaints than controls (P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis showed that subjective complaints in controls were clearly separated into the following two categories: sensory disturbances and movement nerve disturbances, but all complaints in MD patients formed one cluster. Such variation seemed to be due to methylmercury exposure to the central nervous system. ADL analysis revealed that the difference in the ADL disability between MD patients and controls significantly increased with age (P < 0.05) and that ADL disability in MD patients was aggravated by aging.