[Effect of occupational lead exposure on various elements in the human blood. Effects on calcium, cadmium, iron, copper, magnesium, manganese and zinc levels in the human blood, erythrocytes and plasma in vivo].

The influence of occupational lead-exposure on calcium, magnesium and trace elements concentration in blood was investigated. We examined 96 lead-exposed persons and for comparison 46 persons without occupational lead exposure. The levels of lead, cadmium, calcium, iron, copper, magnesium, manganese and zinc were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) in whole-blood, erythrocytes, as well as in plasma. The median of the lead-concentration in whole blood of the exposed group was 646 micrograms/l (+/- 66.6%-range: 449-814 micrograms/l). For the normal persons a median of 148 micrograms Pb/l (+/- 66.6%-range: 107-235 micrograms Pb/l) was calculated. In whole-blood, erythrocytes and plasma all element-concentrations of the non-exposed persons were in the normal ranges. The lead-exposed workers showed a higher manganese level. The other elements were found in normal values for this group. Increasing lead-concentrations in blood correlated with elevated levels of manganese and zinc in whole-blood, erythrocytes and plasma. The lead workers showed for the whole-blood manganese concentration a median of 14.2 micrograms/l (+/- 66.6%-range: 8.5-22.3 micrograms/l), for zinc a median of 6.3 mg/l (+/- 66.6%-range: 5.2-8.2 mg/l). Those levels were significantly higher than the levels of the non-exposed persons. For this group the median concentration of manganese was 4.8 micrograms/l (+/- 66.6%-range: 2.7-8.6 micrograms/l) and 5.7 mg/l (+/- 66.6%-range: 5.1-6.3 mg/l) for zinc respectively. For zinc positive correlation between blood lead levels and the levels of manganese and zinc in the three blood-compartments was found. An essential change of the element concentrations between erythrocytes and plasma, in the sense of a displacement from one blood-compartment to the other could not be detected.