Rowland A, Grainger R, Smith R S, Hicks N, Hughes A
Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Health Authority, Department of Community Medicine.
J R Soc Health. 1990 Oct;110(5):166-72. doi: 10.1177/146642409011000507.
IN JULY 1988 the drinking water supply of part of Cornwall was contaminated with 20 tons of aluminum sulphate solution. Emergency measures ensured that aluminum sulphate levels in most parts of the water distribution system were rapidly reduced, but residents were supplied with water containing raised concentrations of aluminum and other metals for at least a few days. A retrospective cohort study compared 480 individuals in the exposed area with 532 individuals resident in an area served by a different water supply. The exposed group were more likely to complain of all 18 symptoms in the questionnaire enquiry. They had a significantly higher relative risk of experiencing painful joints. These symptoms were reported by less than a quarter of the respondents exposed to contaminated water. This may represent a previously unrecognised acute effect of water contamination with aluminum sulphate, but the study does not exclude the possibility that the threshold for symptom reporting was lowered by anxiety and by the publicity associated with the incident. The overall response rate of the study was low (45%) and reflects the difficulties in both carrying out and interpreting environmental epidemiological studies of acute incidents.
1988年7月，康沃尔郡部分地区的饮用水供应被20吨硫酸铝溶液污染。应急措施确保了配水系统大部分地区的硫酸铝含量迅速降低，但居民至少有几天得到的是含铝和其他金属浓度升高的水。一项回顾性队列研究将暴露地区的480人与居住在不同供水区域的532人进行了比较。在问卷调查中，暴露组更有可能抱怨问卷中的所有18种症状。他们出现关节疼痛的相对风险显著更高。接触受污染水的受访者中，不到四分之一报告了这些症状。这可能代表了硫酸铝水污染以前未被认识到的急性影响，但该研究并未排除症状报告阈值因焦虑和与该事件相关的宣传而降低的可能性。该研究的总体回应率较低（45%），反映了开展和解释急性事件的环境流行病学研究存在的困难。
