UPDATE: This information is current as of June 18, 2010, 6:00 PM ET
CDC has reviewed the results of EPA’s sampling efforts in response to the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. In our review, CDC has used information on the health effects associated with the chemicals detected in the EPA’s samples. CDC’s review is designed to determine whether these pollutants in your community may cause health problems.
The Gulf Coast Oil Spill has the potential to affect human health in addition to the effects already seen on animal and marine life. CDC, along with the affected Gulf Coast states, has developed a plan to track the potential short-term health effects related to the oil spill in the affected communities. Surveillance systems track changes in the number and severity of illnesses and injuries in a population, alerting public health officials to trends that require further investigation.
CDC, with state and local health departments, is conducting surveillance across the five Gulf States for health effects possibly related to the oil spill using national and state-based surveillance systems. These surveillance systems are being used to track symptoms related to the eyes, skin, and respiratory, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and neurological systems, including worsening of asthma, cough, chest pain, eye irritation, nausea, and headache. If the surveillance systems identify groups of people with these symptoms, state and local public health officials will be able to follow-up as needed to investigate whether there is an association between the symptoms and the oil spill. This follow-up is important because the same symptoms could be related to a different cause.
National Poison Data System (NPDS)
CDC has an agreement with the American Association of Poison Control Center’s NPDS to track calls related to the oil spill—including information calls and potential exposures—for 60 Poison Centers (PCs) in all 50 states. This enables CDC to track the number of Poison Center calls and potential health effects. The data are also being provided to the states so that they can follow up as needed.
Each weekday, access updates from the National Poison Data System.
BioSense is a national program that conducts quick surveillance of health information, and enables public health officials to track changes in a population’s health status through access to existing data from healthcare organizations across the country. Biosense includes 86 coastal healthcare facilities in the five Gulf states (Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas) and staff are watching for specific syndromes (groupings of signs and symptoms) that could be related to the oil spill.
Findings (May 27 – June 5)
The BioSense surveillance system experienced hardware malfunctions and was unable to report from May 28 to June 7.
Reviews of BioSense data currently available have found no trends in the number of illnesses and injuries that would require further public health investigation.
Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi are using state-based surveillance systems to track oil spill-related health effects that might be related to occupational or non-occupational exposure. The states and CDC are collecting data from sources such as emergency departments, urgent care facilities, and poison centers for evaluation. States and CDC are regularly sharing data and summaries with each other. As of June 9, 2010, states had reported a few complaints of respiratory symptoms, nausea, and headache in people who had possible oil exposures. Surveillance reveals no trends of public health concern related to the oil spill.
To learn more about each state’s system and findings, click on the state map below.
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