Journal of Dental Research, Vol 80, 1793-1796, Copyright © 2001 by International & American Associations for Dental Research Online Journals
Mercury uptake and kinetics after ingestion of dental amalgam
E. af Geijersstam, G. Sandborgh-Englund, F. Jonsson and J. Ekstrand
Dept. of Basic Oral Sciences, School of Dentistry, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden.
The aim of the present study was to investigate the G-1 uptake of mercury
(Hg) after intake of a single dose of amalgam-Hg, followed by
pharmacokinetic analysis of the data. Eleven volunteers without amalgam
fillings ingested 1.00 g amalgam powder. Hg in plasma vs. time was analyzed
with a two-compartment model by means of mixed-effects modeling. A fraction
of the absorption rate of Hg to the central compartment was inversely
proportional to the plasma ferritin levels. The population mean half-life
of the terminal phase of Hg in plasma was 37 days, with a considerable
standard deviation in the population. The absorbed fraction of the
administered dose was estimated to be about 0.04%. It is concluded that the
G-1 uptake of Hg is of quantitative importance during dental treatment.
