Slight renal effect of mercury from amalgam fillings.
The current study was to answer the question: Is enough mercury absorbed from dental amalgam fillings to produce renal damage? One hundred healthy adults (18-44 years old) filled out health questionnaires and voided urine samples. Urine mercury concentration and N-acetyl-beta-glucosaminidase (NAG) were measured. Subjects were grouped into those having amalgam fillings (N = 66) and those without (N = 34). Median (95% Confidence Interval) urine mercury was 1 (1-2) and 0 (0-0.6) ng/ml (P < 0.01) and median urine NAG was 23 (18-27) and 16 (11-18) units (P < 0.05) in the two groups respectively. People with mercury amalgam fillings excreted slightly more mercury than people without them, and have a very small increase in urinary NAG excretion that is probably of no clinical significance. This dose of mercury absorbed from amalgam appears to be too little to be a public health hazard for renal injury.
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Department of Pharmacology, Cornell University Medical College, New York, NY 10021, USA.
Weisman
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Hoffman
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Reidenberg
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MM
D000118:Acetylglucosaminidase / Q000652:urine; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003723:Dental Amalgam / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D008628:Mercury / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000652:urine
D003723:Dental Amalgam; D000118:Acetylglucosaminidase; D008628:Mercury