Four year old son's lead levels were 8 per lab work recently done. doctor wants labs redone in 3 weeks. why wait and not treat?

Not too high: Blood lead level of 8 is not that high. It makes sense to repeat the test to confirm the level. As long as the child not being exposed to more lead, three weeks wait is not likely to have an adverse effect. Treatments have their own issues.

Very common: to wait and see if the results were falsely high, in order to be sure that the treatment is warranted. Also, the cut off for children is 5mg/dl, so waiting to see if the levels improve over time is reasonable

Lead poisoning: The treatment for lead poisoning is called chelation. This treatment is not without risk, as it can be harmful to the liver and bone marrow, and is reserved for children with extremely high levels of lead (>45), or those showing signs of toxicity (>60 according to WHO). Repeat monitoring is done to see if continued exposure exists. If so, state agencies will investigate source to eliminate.

Remove sources Pb: Usually not treated if less than 10 except to remove sources of lead poisoning like pottery and old lead-based peeling paint. http://www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/tips/sources.htm

Agree: No medical treatment , but you have to remove possible sources of lead contamination such as pain and pottery

Lead level of 8: Though a level of 8 is higher than average, the CDC recommends that with levels between 5 and 9 mcg/dl to be retested again in 3 to 6 months. Local health department can also verify the levels that require chelation therapy but they are usually between 15-44 . I recommend that you go to the following site for more information: www.cdc.gov/nceh/lead/. The treatment is not without health risks.