Association of Blood Heavy Metal Levels and Renal Function in Korean Adults

This study aimed to investigate the association between the levels of lead, mercury, cadmium, and nickel in the blood and renal function and to provide basic data for the development of health programs for the prevention of renal failure. This study included 1984 participants aged 19 and older who participated in the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2019. Differences in values according to general characteristics and the estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) stage were analyzed using a chi-square test, t-test, ANOVA, and the influencing factors were analyzed through multiple regression analysis. The concentrations of lead, mercury, cadmium, and nickel, and the risk of elevated eGFR were analyzed using linear regression. The correlation between the variables was determined using Pearson’s correlation analysis. Analysis of the correlation between blood lead, mercury, cadmium, and nickel levels and blood eGFR levels revealed that blood eGFR levels were significantly negatively correlated with blood lead, cadmium, and nickel levels (p ≤ 0.001). This study is significant in that it found a significant association between decreased eGFR and heavy metal levels and provided meaningful basic data on the association between heavy metals and renal function.