Urinary fluoride excretion by preschool children in six European countries.
OBJECTIVE
To measure and compare 24-h urinary fluoride excretion in children aged 1.5-3.5 years from European study sites and to use these data to estimate the 24-h fluoride intake.


METHODS
Twenty-four-hour urine samples were collected from 3-year-old children (n = 86) who were already participating in a European multicentre study. Samples were collected from Cork, Ireland (n = 19) where the water is fluoridated to a concentration between 0.8 and 1.0 ppm and from five sites with a water fluoride concentration <0.15 ppm: Knowsley, England (n = 18); Oulu, Finland (n = 18); Reykjavik, Iceland (n = 4); Haarlem, the Netherlands (n = 6); Almada/Setubal, Portugal (n = 21). The volume of the samples was measured; they were analysed for fluoride concentration and the 24-h urinary fluoride excretion was calculated. From this an estimate of the daily fluoride intake was made.


RESULTS
It was found that the mean fluoride excretion in response to the usual conditions of fluoride intake in the children in the nonfluoridated areas ranged from 0.16 mg (+/-0.08) in Oulu to 0.33 mg (+/-0.27) in Almada/Setubal with an overall mean of 0.23 mg (+/-0.19). The mean 24-h fluoride excretion in fluoridated Cork was 0.37 mg (+/-0.11). There was a significant difference between the fluoride excretion in the nonfluoridated areas and that in the fluoridated areas, and the data were broadly in agreement with WHO standards.


CONCLUSIONS
The daily urinary fluoride excretion and estimated fluoride intake in these children appeared to be within acceptable limits.
Ketley
Clare E
CE
Department of Clinical Dental Sciences, The University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK. C.E.Ketley@liverpool.ac.uk
Cochran
Judith A
JA
Holbrook
W Peter
WP
Sanches
Leonor
L
van Loveren
Cor
C
Oila
Anna-Maria
AM
O'Mullane
Denis M
DM
D002327:Cariostatic Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004739:England; D005387:Finland; D005457:Fluoridation; D005459:Fluorides / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000652:urine*; D006801:Humans; D007055:Iceland; D007494:Ireland; D009426:Netherlands; D011174:Portugal
D002327:Cariostatic Agents; D005459:Fluorides