ArticleBMJ open2025
A cross-sectional study assessing mercury exposure and poisoning among workers in informal gold mines in French Guiana.
Article in BMJ open, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- Community-Based Hypertension Screening to Prevent Stroke in Underserved Urban Neighborhoods in French Guiana: Protocol for a Quasi-Experimental Study.JMIR research protocols · 2026Article
- A multicentric cross-sectional survey to assess cardiovascular risk factors among persons working in informal gold mines in French-Guiana.BMC public health · 2026Article
- Psychosocial vulnerability of people working in informal gold mines in French Guiana: a multicentric cross-sectional survey in 2024-2025.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
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Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesInformal gold mining represents a major source of mercury pollution worldwide. People involved in informal gold mining in French Guiana are mainly migrants from Brazil and represent an exposed, mobile and hard-to-reach population. This study assessed mercury poisoning in this particular population.
designThis multicentre, cross-sectional survey, conducted in 2022, included participants using snowball sampling.
settingInclusions took place in the logistical rare bases of gold mining at the border between French Guiana and Brazil and French Guiana and Suriname.
participantsBetween September and December 2022, 539 participants were included in the study. Inclusion criteria were being over 18 years, working in gold mines in French Guiana and having left the mine for less than 7 days. Among them, 526 had a usable blood sample, and 439 had a usable hair sample.
interventionAfter giving informed consent, the participants received a questionnaire, a medical examination and provided a dried blood spot and a hair sample.
resultsThe median concentration of mercury in hair was 4.5 µg/g (IQR=1.3-9.4), and 46.7% of the study population (205/439) had a concentration above 5 µg/g and 23.7% (104/439) above 10 µg/g. This population is highly exposed to mercury inhalation, with 59.0% performing or witnessing the gold amalgamation process, using minimal protective measures. Piscivorous fish consumption is another potential source of contamination, with 82.0% reporting consumption in the previous month. This digestive source of exposure seems to be associated with mercury hair concentration. We observed a geographical heterogeneity of mercury exposure, with lower levels of poisoning in the eastern part of the region. Higher hair mercury concentrations were found in individuals with a history of malaria attacks and with systolic blood pressure above 160 mm Hg.
conclusionMercury intoxication in this population is concerning and comparable to levels observed in other Amazonian communities. Physicians treating women working in gold mines should assess mercury concentrations in their hair and provide appropriate guidance. Comprehensive clinical investigations are needed in future studies to accurately assess neuropsychological impacts.
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