Abstract: Objective To investigate the residents’ health status of digestive system in hexavalent chromium contaminated areas. Methods 2473 residents in Jinzhou were randomly selected from three villages near an alloy plant with 50 years of hexavalent chromium pollution by cluster sampling. The three villages are seriously polluted, slightly polluted and unpolluted areas, respectively. A questionnaire-based survey was conducted. Results According to the pollutant level from heavy to light, the total prevalence of the digestive system symptoms (nausea, emesis, dyspepsia, diarrhea, stomachache, gastro spasm, erosion of angulus oris) in the three study areas was 36.08%, 8.23% and 0.73% successively, and the prevalence of liver and gall diseases was 2.78%, 1.51% and 1.16% successively, and the prevalence of peptic ulcer was 1.14%, 0.50% and 0.29% successively. The more polluted, the higher the prevalence of each digestive system symptoms, liver and gall diseases and peptic ulcer was. Neither of the prevalence of gastrointestinal inflammation and pancreatitis statistically significant correlated to the pollution level. Conclusion Exposure to hexavalent chromium in the environment chronically led to digestive system of the human body damaged.

Key words: hexavalent chromium, pollution, environmental exposure, digestive system, health survey