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Diagnostic usefulness of trace arsenic in human urine, whole blood, hair and fingernails.

1986; National Institutes of Health; Volume: 2; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

Shan-Meei Lin,

Immunotoxicology and immune responses

Because of rapid clearance of arsenic in the blood after an accidental exposure, it is important to check the blood arsenic level as soon as possible after exposure. In cases of chronic exposure, however, the blood arsenic level is usually so low that substantial analytical problems will probably be met. Blood arsenic level, therefore, cannot be regarded as an indicator of chronic exposure. Instead, urine arsenic level was used as an index of exposure, although a lot of factors, such as diets and the interval between exposure and urine sampling, might complicate it. For example, ingestion of sea food, which is rich in organic arsenic, often results in a high concentration of arsenic in urine. In the present study, the author tried to separate the organic and inorganic arsenicals in urine before assay, to prevent or to decrease the influence of dietary arsenic. Assessment of arsenic content in hair is another and still a better indication of arsenic long-term exposure. Hair is chemically an inert and homogeneous substance, so it is itself a continuous record of previous and present arsenic level in the body. Furthermore, the content of arsenic is higher in hair than in blood. Hence, hair is a good medium for monitoring body arsenic. The arsenic content in fingernails is also high. But , the value of the assessment of fingernail content as an indicator of chronic arsenic exposure remains to be determined.