Content of chromium in blood and urine among general population in Liaoning province

Objective To explore the level of chromium(Cr) in blood and urine and its distribution characteristics among general population in Liaoning province between 2009 and 2010.Methods From 2009 to 2010, a total of 2 105 community residents aged 6-60 years were recruited from 3 municipalities in eastern, central, and western Liaoning province with random cluster sampling.A questionnaire survey was used to collect the participants' information on living environment and health conditions.Totally 2 105 blood samples and 1 691 urine samples were collected.Inductive coupled plasma mass spectrometry(ICP-MS) was applied to measure Cr level in the samples.Gender, age, and regional distribution of Cr concentration were analyzed statistically.Results Among the participants, the geometric mean(GM) of blood Cr concentration was 0.53 μg/L, with a median of 0.3 μg/L and a 95% percentile of 2.92 μg/L.The GM of blood Cr in the male and female participants were 0.49 μg/L and 0.58 μg/L(P<0.01) and that in the participants aged 6-12, 13-16, 17-20, 21-30, 31-45, and 46-60 years were 0.38, 0.57, 0.66, 0.55, 0.57, and 0.52 μg/L(P<0.01);the GM of blood Cr for the participants from eastern, central, and western Liaoning province were 0.32, 1.23, and 0.42 μg/L(P<0.01).The GM of urine Cr for all the participants was lower than the method detection limit(MDL) 0.42 μg/L.There were statistically significant gender and regional differences in the GM of urine Cr among the participants(P<0.01 for all).Conclusion The levels of blood and urine Cr among general population in Liaoning province are lower than the average levels of the general population in China.The results of the study could be used as references for further study on the Cr biological monitoring, identification of occupational contraindication and other related studies.