Camacho-delaCruz Arlette A, Mendoza-Cano Oliver, Trujillo Xóchitl, Huerta Miguel, Ríos-Silva Mónica, Gonzalez-Curiel Irma Elizabeth, Lugo-Radillo Agustin, Romo-García María Fernanda, Cuevas-Arellano Herguin Benjamin, Hilerio-López Ángel Gabriel, Solano-Barajas Ramón, Bricio-Barrios Jaime Alberto, Uribe-Ramos Juan Manuel, Ventura-Ramírez J Francisco, Solano-Mendoza Alma Alejandra, Sánchez-Cárdenas Fernando, Benites-Godínez Verónica, Ríos-Bracamontes Eder Fernando, Venegas-Ramírez Jesús, Murillo-Zamora Efrén
Facultad de Ingeniería Civil, Universidad de Colima, Carretera Colima-Coquimatlán km 9, Coquimatlán 28400, Mexico.
Centro Universitario de Investigaciones Biomédicas, Universidad de Colima, Av. 25 de Julio 965, Colima 28045, Mexico.
Toxics. 2025 May 25;13(6):431. doi: 10.3390/toxics13060431.
Children constitute a population at risk from environmental exposure to trace elements. This study aimed to evaluate correlations between urinary and blood levels of multiple elements in school-aged children (5-12 years), assessing whether urine, a less invasive matrix, could complement or replace blood sampling. A pilot biomonitoring study was conducted, and 91 children provided urine and venous blood samples in which the levels of 17 contaminants (Al, As, Ba, Cs, Co, Cu, I, Pb, Li, Mn, Mo, Ni, Se, Sr, Te, Ti, and Zn) were assessed. Spearman correlation coefficients (rho) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were computed. Urinary and blood levels of arsenic (rho = 0.23, 95% CI 0.01-0.44), lead (rho = 0.43, 95% CI 0.24-0.61), and strontium (rho = 0.22, 95% CI 0.03-0.40) showed significant correlations. These findings suggest that urine sampling could serve as a practical alternative to blood collection for monitoring specific trace elements like lead in pediatric populations, particularly in large-scale studies where participant compliance is critical. However, modest correlations for other elements highlight the need for element-specific validation before adopting urine as a universal biomonitoring matrix. Future research should explore the pharmacokinetic and exposure-related factors driving these relationships to optimize non-invasive surveillance strategies for children's environmental health.
儿童是因环境暴露于微量元素而面临风险的人群。本研究旨在评估学龄儿童（5至12岁）尿液和血液中多种元素水平之间的相关性，评估尿液这种侵入性较小的基质是否可以补充或替代血液采样。开展了一项试点生物监测研究，91名儿童提供了尿液和静脉血样本，评估了其中17种污染物（铝、砷、钡、铯、钴、铜、碘、铅、锂、锰、钼、镍、硒、锶、碲、钛和锌）的水平。计算了斯皮尔曼相关系数（rho）和95%置信区间（CI）。砷（rho = 0.23，95% CI 0.01 - 0.44）、铅（rho = 0.43，95% CI 0.24 - 0.61）和锶（rho = 0.22，95% CI 0.03 - 0.40）的尿液和血液水平显示出显著相关性。这些发现表明，对于监测儿科人群中的特定微量元素如铅，尿液采样可以作为血液采集的一种实用替代方法，特别是在参与者依从性至关重要的大规模研究中。然而，其他元素的相关性较弱，这凸显了在将尿液作为通用生物监测基质之前，需要针对特定元素进行验证。未来的研究应探索驱动这些关系的药代动力学和暴露相关因素，以优化儿童环境健康的非侵入性监测策略。
