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Age-Dependent Changes in Pb Concentration in Human Teeth

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Abstract

The result of exposure to Pb is its accumulation in mineralized tissues. In human body, they constitute a reservoir of approx. 90 % of the Pb reserve. The conducted research aimed at determining the accumulation of Pb in calcified tissues of permanent teeth. The concentration of Pb in 390 samples of teeth taken from a selected group of Polish people was determined using the AAS method. Average concentration of Pb in teeth amounted to 14.3 ± 8.18 μg/g, range of changes: 2.21–54.8 μgPb/g. Accumulation of Pb in human body was determined based on changes in Pb concentration in teeth of subjects aged 13–84 years. It was found that in calcified tissues of teeth, the increase in concentration of Pb that occurs with age is a statistically significant process (p = 0.02, the ANOVA Kruskal–Wallis test). It was determined that the annual increase in concentration of Pb in tissues of teeth is approx. 0.1 μg/g. Moreover, a different course of changes in Pb concentration in tissues of teeth in people born in different years was observed. The level of Pb concentration in teeth of the oldest subjects (>60 years) decreased for those born in the 1930s compared to those in the 1950s. Teeth from younger persons (<60 years) were characterized by an increasing level of Pb concentration. The analysis of changes of Pb indicates that for low exposure, a relatively greater accumulation of Pb concentration in calcified tissues of teeth can occur.

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Acknowledgments

This work was financed by the Medical University of Silesia in Katowice (contract No. KNW-1-027/N/5/0)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Toxicology, School of Pharmacy with the Division of Laboratory Medicine in Sosnowiec, Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, Katowice, Poland

    Agnieszka Fischer & Danuta Wiechuła

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  1. Agnieszka Fischer
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  2. Danuta Wiechuła
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Correspondence to Agnieszka Fischer.

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Fischer, A., Wiechuła, D. Age-Dependent Changes in Pb Concentration in Human Teeth. Biol Trace Elem Res 173, 47–54 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-016-0643-1

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