Taux K, Kraus T, Kaifie A. Mercury Exposure and Its Health Effects in Workers in the Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining (ASGM) Sector—A Systematic Review.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022;
19:ijerph19042081. [PMID:
35206270 PMCID:
PMC8871667 DOI:
10.3390/ijerph19042081]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Revised: 02/08/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Gold is one of the most valuable materials but is frequently extracted under circumstances that are hazardous to artisanal and small-scale gold miners’ health. A common gold extraction method uses liquid mercury, leading to a high exposure in workers. Therefore, a systematic review according to the PRISMA criteria was conducted in order to examine the health effects of occupational mercury exposure. Researching the databases PubMed®, EMBASE® and Web of ScienceTM yielded in a total of 10,589 results, which were screened by two independent reviewers. We included 19 studies in this review. According to the quantitative assessment, occupational mercury exposure may cause a great variety of signs and symptoms, in particular in the field of neuro-psychological disorders, such as ataxia, tremor or memory problems. However, many reported symptoms were largely unspecific, such as hair loss or pain. Most of the included studies had a low methodological quality with an overall high risk of bias rating. The results demonstrate that occupational mercury exposure seriously affects miners’ health and well-being.
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