Allergic disease, immunoglobulins, exposure to mercury and dental amalgam in Swedish adolescents.
High-dose exposure to inorganic mercury in man can influence the immune system and in rare cases cause immune-related disease. Some experimental animals also react with autoimmunity after low doses of inorganic mercury. Glomerulonephritis and an increased formation of immunoglobulin type E (IgE) are characteristic of these reactions. A recent study of 15-year-old adolescents demonstrated an association between immunoglobulin type A (IgA) and mercury concentration in plasma (P-Hg). There was also an association between allergic disease and IgA levels. The present study included 54 male and 23 female 19-year-old students who were recruited from a cohort that had been previously defined in a survey of allergic disease. Of the students, 39 (51%) had asthma, allergic rhinoconjunctivitis or eczema. Similar amalgam burden and P-Hg levels were observed in students with (n = 39) and without (n = 38) allergic disease (P = 0.48 and P = 0.98, respectively). As expected, IgE levels were significantly higher in the group with allergic disease (P = 0.006), but there was no association between P-Hg and IgE. The P-Hg levels were very low (median 1.50 nmol/l) and correlated significantly (r = 0.31) with the small number of amalgam surfaces (P = 0.007). Thirty-seven students had no amalgam fillings. P-Hg levels did not associate significantly with IgA, but did so with IgG2 (r = 0.33; P = 0.003). No conclusive correlation was observed between IgG2 and amalgam fillings. The findings of this study in 19-year-old subjects differ from earlier data obtained in a sample 4 years younger. The possibility of chance in the association between P-Hg levels and IgG2 must, however, be considered.
Herrström
P
P
Primary Care Center Hertig Knut, Halmstad, Sweden.
Högstedt
B
B
Holthuis
N
N
Schütz
A
A
Råstam
L
L
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001249:Asthma / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D003723:Dental Amalgam / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004485:Eczema / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007136:Immunoglobulins / Q000032:analysis*; D008297:Male; D008628:Mercury / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000097:blood; D015995:Prevalence; D012221:Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000276:immunology; D013548:Sweden / Q000453:epidemiology
D007136:Immunoglobulins; D003723:Dental Amalgam; D008628:Mercury