The lead burden is not uniformly distributed. Children in Louisville are more likely to have elevated blood lead concentrations as are children in the rest of Jefferson county. The area of high incidence of elevated blood lead concentration include zip codes 40202,40205,40206,40210,40211,40212,40214. These are located in the downtown area, along I-64 to Jefferson town, and south to the Waterson Expressway. Risk factors appear to be proximity to high traffic corridors, to highways built prior to 1980, and to housing built before 1950.
Older homes undergoing extensive remodeling pose a higher risk of exposure to lead.
Symptoms of lead poisoning include fatigue, irritability, mylagia, lethargy, and occasional abdominal discomfort. The ubiquitous distribution of lead in population centers and its physical stability continue to result in exposure to the population. Young children show a greater prevalence of iron deficiency, a condition that can increase gastronintersinal absorption of lead. Children can also absorb and retain more on lead in proportion to their body weight. Children between 12 and 36 months are at particular risk because they explore the world, and its contaminated soil, with their hands and mouth.