People exposed to chemicals used in coatings for pots and pans, furniture, and clothing run higher risks of getting osteoarthritis, says a recent stud...
People exposed to chemicals used in coatings for pots and pans,
furniture, and clothing run higher risks of getting osteoarthritis, says a recent study on residents in the United States. This study, which was circulated online in the American Journal of Epidemiology, comprised about 50,000 adults who lived in six different districts in West Virginia and Ohio where water was contaminated with PFOA (perfluorooctanoate) and PFOS (perfluorooctane sulfonate) by a DuPont Chemical plant.
Elevated blood levels of a chemical used in non-stick and stain-resistant coatings for pots and pans, furniture, clothing and other commonly used products have been associated to an increased risk of osteoarthritis in a study of people exposed to contaminated drinking water.
Osteoarthritis is a condition affecting the joints. Severe cases of this may lead to a hip replacement surgery where complications may arise. Just for instance, that of Stryker Rejuvenate Modular hip recall where its recipients complained of pain, inflammation, and metal toxicity.
PFOA and PFOS are organic contaminants that, once out, it will remain in the environment and stay in the human body for some years. Study participants were given a full health assessment and had blood measurements of levels of PFOA, PFOS and other chemicals. The participants also provided a full medical history, including doctor’s finding of osteoarthritis.
Those with the maximum levels of this chemical PFOA in their bodies were probably 40 percent more to have osteoarthritis compared to those in the study who had the lowest levels.
However, blood levels of the other compound, PFOS, were inversely associated with osteoarthritis, which means the higher the blood levels, the lesser the possibility of having the disease.
“While our findings suggest exposure to these chemicals may be linked to osteoarthritis risk, no conclusions regarding cause and effect can be drawn due to the cross-sectional nature of the study. Clearly, more research is warranted,” expounds lead author Kim Innes, PhD, an associate professor at the School of Medicine at West Virginia University in Morgantown, in an email.
Almost eight percent of the participants were found to have osteoarthritis. The association between PFOA and this degenerating disease was prevalent in younger people and non-obese people.
This study does not demonstrate a direct cause and effect. Though, Innes says, “If these associations (for PFOA and PFOS) are confirmed in large prospective studies in people free of osteoarthritis at baseline, public health implications could be substantial, given the high prevalence and costs of this disorder.”
At this point in time, precise recommendations regarding PFOA would be premature, Innes states, “but it is always wise to limit exposure to any known environmental pollutant, as many, including PFOA, may have negative effects on human health.”
