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HERO ID
172415
Reference Type
Journal Article
Title
Lead poisoning as possible cause of deaths at the Swedish House at Kapp Thordsen, Spitsbergen, winter 1872-3
Author(s)
Aasebo, U; Kjaer, KG
Year
2009
Is Peer Reviewed?
Yes
Journal
British Medical Journal (International Edition)
ISSN:
0959-8146
EISSN:
0959-535X
Volume
339
Page Numbers
b5038
Language
English
PMID
19965937
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To investigate cause of death in 17 sealers who died in the Swedish house in Kapp Thordsen, Spitsbergen, during the winter of 1872-3. DESIGN: Analysis of skeletal samples from one sealer's grave. SETTING: Field trip to Spitsbergen to exhume skeletal remains. SUBJECTS: One of 17 sailors who died in 1872-3. RESULTS: No objective signs of scurvy were found. The concentration of lead in the bone samples was 102.05 microg/g. CONCLUSIONS: The high concentrations of lead indicate that this man died from lead poisoning, probably from food tins. The absence of macroscopic signs of scurvy supports this theory.
Keywords
Bone and Bones/chemistry; Cause of Death; Food Contamination; Food, Preserved/adverse effects/history; History, 19th Century; Humans; Lead/analysis; Lead Poisoning/diagnosis/ history; Male; Naval Medicine/ history; Occupational Diseases/diagnosis/ history; Scurvy/diagnosis/history; Seasons; Sweden
Tag
NAAQS
•
ISA-Lead (2013 Final Project Page)
Considered
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