Adult blood lead epidemiology and surveillance -- United States, first quarter 1997, and annual 1996.

CDC's National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Adult Blood Lead Epidemiology and Surveillance (ABLES) program monitors laboratory-reported elevated blood lead levels (BLLs) among adults in the United States. Data for New Mexico, Rhode Island, and Wyoming are included for the first time in this report, increasing the number of reporting states to 27 (Illinois discontinued reporting at the end of 1996). Twenty-five states reported surveillance data to the ABLES program in 1996. This report presents ABLES data for the first quarter of 1997 compared with the first quarter of 1996 and annual data for 1996 compared with 1995. The findings from 1995 and 1996 indicate a continuing decrease in the annual number of persons reported with elevated BLLs, although the number of reports in the first quarter of 1997 were higher than that for the same period in 1996.