OT good thought please, OMG LEAD

WHAT a nightmare!

Fingers and toes are crossed that they find the cause quickly and deal with it and that there is no serious long term damage to any of the children. I don't know how that works out: there is very little news of such things happening here.

((((((Nightmist' DD and Damien)))))) ((((((and the rest of the family))))))

I am sure that a lot of you recall the trials and tribulations we went through finding the source of contamination, and dealing with Ash's elevated lead levels. The highest his levels ever were was 12 (on whatever scale the county uses). DD1 rang me today in a total panic because DGS's lead level is 37. That might well explain some developmental delays and such that he has been experiencing. Back in January DD finally fled her living arrangements and went into a domestic violence shelter. She has had her current apartment for less than two months. Since the shelter gets regular screenings, and even if Damien were sucking lead ingots it would be doubtful that his levels would get this high in less than two months, the problem most probably lies at his father's house, which also periodically houses three other children all of which have problems that could be ascribed to lead exposure. Just as a topper, the house is owned by his mother and stepfather. This may get ugly.

Good thoughts for Damien and his three half brothers, and best wishes that this does not turn into a massive mess please.

NightMist exhausted just from talking to the girl.

sounds awful - I'll be praying!

Musicmaker

Nightmist, can you get ahold of your county's health department? They have the right to come and inspect a home for possible lead. If they don't/can't do it, they'll definetly know some agency (EPA?) that would know exactly what do to.

Lead is horrible and after all these years you'd think it'd be gone but it's still out there. Prayers to you and your loved ones.

Donna in WA

Piggybacking on Donna's post, wouldn't the doctor have more pull to get the house checked to find a source?

G> Nightmist, can you get ahold of your county's health

County health department, for sure. Then, have the pediatrician document the outrageous lead levels and get that information to the judge who sets up custody arrangements and ask for a rehearing. No child should be even visiting in a house that has lead available. And what kind of lead would it be to get THAT HIGH in such a short time? Might the man be hiding lead ingots? Is he an alchemical-wannabe? I'm not making light of the situation. Lead poisoning is serious. Thankfully, the problem can usually be helped quickly in youngsters who haven't been exposed over long periods of time. Somebody needs to make Damien's father aware of the problem. Could be (maybe?) the man would think enough of the other children to stop painting inside walls with exterior paint and put some sealant over the mess.

Sunny praying all will be well

I'd Definately contact the County Codes officer and the children's doctor. He can get Child Protective services out there, they could get the house condemned unless the owner can fix the problem. He may even get his visitation restricted.

Sending prayers and good vibes your way for a quick resolution!

amy in CNY

Artist, maybe? You can't use lead in house paint any more but art paints may be a different story (and artists are universally filthy slobs who cover every surface of their environment with paint splatters, half-eaten sandwiches and cigarette ends).

----------------------------------------------------------------------------- e m a i l : j a c k @ c a m p i n . m e . u k Jack Campin, 11 Third Street, Newtongrange, Midlothian EH22 4PU, Scotland mobile 07800 739 557 Twitter: JackCampin

I sure hope it gets sorted out quickly to prevent further lead exposure. Good luck, Allison

OMG -- is he a gamer? Does he have those nasty little lead figures around? My sons have some of those, lead every one. They can be painted and are somewhat amusing. They come in shapes from dragons to ..... orcs and the like. And what little child wouldn't put a thing like that in his mouth? AND most of the paint for those little creatures is also lead based.

Good luck, Sunny

Those things are made from white metal. No lead in them. "lead soldiers" haven't contained lead for many years.

I'm the artist, and I switched to acrylics ages ago. No more kitty footprints in shocking colors on the furniture. Generally less toxic on several levels. Though you still have certain metal pigments in common. lead is not one of those pigments. Plus I paint using a series of glazes over a monotone. It can take years to finish off a single painting doing that in oils. I confess to splatters, but butts stay in the general vicinity of the ashtray, and he or she who brings food into my studio will die horribly. Though I will confess to an army of beverage containers, all sorts.

No, Damien's dad is not an artist, nor a gun hobbiest. He has several substance abuse issues, and a tendency to blame anybody but the guy in the mirror for everything. He had DD half convinced that she was to blame for him getting wasted and pounding on her. I think alcohol and assorted illegal offables are his only hobbies. At present he has no custody rights to Damien, just a restraining order that keeps him away from both mother and child except in structured supervised venues. He has the other kids for overnight visitations though (yes, the law is often stupid).

On the plus side in this county, and probably most of NY state, A finding of a lead level over 10 necessitates the pediatrician notifying the Department of Environmental Health. DD has already spoken to them, and they are not even going to come to her apartment because under the program she got it through they had to go through it before she could move in in the first place. It has already been recently screened in other words. The only place left is Dad's house.

I discovered that the numbers are not a scale as I was previously told (probably by someone making a guess). It is just a straightforward measure. Damien's level of 37 means he has 37 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood in his body. Because he just turned 2, his pediatrician feels that immediate action is called for. So rather than simply keeping him away from lead and increasing dietary factors that will help decrease it, they are going to chelate him. Normally that is not done in children unless the level is

45 or more, however because he is an infant the doctor feels it is warranted.

By the by, when I was growing up my dad was in a civil war unit at the Rod and Gun club. Mostly they dressed up and did target shooting with period weapons. Everybody had to make their own bullets. It is not as though your average gun shop sells bullets for muzzle loaders. My dad used to make them in the kitchen. If we were good and didn't get in the way he would let us smear the shortening on before he put the bullets in the paper cartridges. Yeah he used the same can of Crisco my mom used for cooking. I don't know how any of us survived through the sixties and before!

NightMist used to use five pound lead ingots for building blocks when she was four or five

I don't know how it works where NM lives, but I do know how it works in IL (David has been dealing with the same problem from the Landlord's prospective). In IL the doctor is required to report lead levels above a certain threshold to parents and the Department of Public Health. Public Health can then inspect the home(s)/schools/day care centers of the child.

The inspector tests the home (walls, windows, floors, other items that usually/may contain lead or lead paint). Then the Department sent David a letter listing the results and what actions he had to take to mitigate the hazard and the time frame he had to mitigate in.

However, there are new federal regs in place about lead mitigation which are going to make it a lot harder to get the work done. Right now in our area there are about 3 or 5 certified contractors and now you need a certified contractor if children under the age of 6 live in the home.

Maureen

On Tue, 25 May 2010 07:50:18 -0500, Ginger in CA wrote (in article ):