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Press Release: The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry’s (ATSDR) study article "Evaluation of contaminated drinking water and preterm birth, small for gestational age, and birth weight at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina: a cross-sectional study" has been released
Nov. 21, 2014

United States Marine Corps Media Branch
Capt Maureen Krebs

HEADQUARTERS MARINE CORPS - ATSDR’s "Evaluation of contaminated drinking water and preterm birth, small for gestational age, and birth weight at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, North Carolina: a cross-sectional study" journal article was published online yesterday.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate associations between residential prenatal exposure to contaminated drinking water at Camp Lejeune between 1968 and 1985 and preterm birth, small for gestational age (SGA), term low birth weight (TLBW), and mean birth weight deficit (MBW). Birth certificates identified mothers residing at Camp Lejeune at delivery. ATSDR analyzed exposure data for the entire pregnancy and individual trimesters. For each period examined, births were categorized as unexposed if mothers did not reside at Camp Lejeune or if their residence on base received uncontaminated drinking water.

The Provisional PDF and ATSDR’s factsheet that include results of the study can be viewed here: http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/sites/lejeune/AdverseBirthOutcomesStudy.html

For more information about this and other studies being conducted by ATSDR, visit http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/sites/lejeune/ or call (800) 232-4636.

The Camp Lejeune historic drinking water issue is an important concern for our Marine Corps family. Some of our Marine family members have experienced tragic health issues they believe are associated with water they drank or used in the past at Camp Lejeune. Our goal is to use the best available science in an effort to provide our Marine Corps family members the answers they deserve and keep them updated as new information becomes available. Since 1991 we have supported scientific and public health organizations that are studying these issues. We continue to work diligently to identify and notify individuals who, in the past, may have been exposed to the chemicals in drinking water. For more information, or to register to receive information as future studies are released, please see: www.marines.mil/clwater

Individuals that have a medical condition that they believe may be related to the historic drinking water at Camp Lejeune should visit their health care provider. Veterans and their family members are encouraged to visit the Department of Veterans Affairs website, http://www.publichealth.va.gov/exposures/camp-lejeune, to learn more about health care benefits provided pursuant to the “Honoring America’s Veterans and Caring for Camp Lejeune Families Act of 2012.”

The drinking water at Camp Lejeune currently meets all government drinking water standards and is tested more often than required. For Camp Lejeune’s annual water quality reports, please see: http://www.lejeune.marines.mil/OfficesStaff/EnvironmentalMgmt/AnnualReports.aspx

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