Levels of lead, cadmium, copper, iron, and zinc in deciduous teeth of children living in Irbid, Jordan by ICP-OES: some factors affecting their concentrations.

The aim of this study was to measure the concentrations of lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), iron (Fe), and zinc (Zn) in deciduous teeth from children living in Jordan and to investigate the affecting factors. Deciduous teeth samples (n = 320, without fillings) were collected from 5- to 12-year-old children and analyzed for Pb, Cd, Cu, Fe, and Zn using inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry. A questionnaire was used to gather information on each child, such as sex, age, tooth type (incisors, canines, and molars), tooth position within the mouth (upper or lower jaw), caries status, presence of amalgam fillings inside the mouth, type of drinking water (tap water, home purified water, and plant purified water), and zone of residence (close to or far from heavy traffic roads). The mean concentrations of Pb, Cd, Cu, Fe, and Zn were 30.26, 0.55, 6.23, 34.72, and 128.21 µg/g, respectively. Our results indicate that there is a clear relation between the concentrations of the metals analyzed in this study and tooth type, tooth position within the mouth, caries status, presence of amalgam fillings inside the mouth, and type of drinking water. No significant differences in the concentrations of the five metals analyzed were observed due to sex. Our results also show that no significant difference among Pb, Cd, Cu, Fe, and Zn concentrations and age among the ages of 5-6, 7-8, 9-10, and 11-12, except for Pb, which decreases at age 11-12.

Lead and cadmium in human teeth from Jordan by atomic absorption spectrometry: Some factors influencing their concentrations.

The aim of this study was to measure the concentrations of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) in human teeth and to investigate the affecting factors. Teeth samples (n = 268) were collected from people living in different cities in Jordan including Amman, Zarqa, Al-Mafraq and Irbid and analyzed for Pb and Cd using atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS). A questionnaire was used to gather information on each person, such as age, sex, place where the patient lives, smoking, presence of amalgam fillings inside the mouth, and whether the patient uses toothpaste or not. The mean concentrations of Pb and Cd were 28.91 microg/g and 0.44 microg/g, respectively. The results indicate that there is a clear relation between Pb and Cd concentrations and the presence of amalgam fillings, smoking, and place of living. Pb was sex-dependent, whereas Cd was not. Our results show that Pb and Cd concentrations in samples obtained from Al-Mafraq and Irbid are higher than those obtained from Amman and Zarqa. Pb was highest in Mafraq, whereas Cd was highest in Irbid. The Pb and Cd concentrations in teeth from smokers (means: Pb = 31.89 microg/g, Cd = 0.49 microg/g) were significantly higher than those from nonsmokers (means: Pb = 24.07 microg/g, Cd = 0.37 microg/g). Pb and Cd concentrations in teeth of patients with amalgam fillings (means: Pb = 31.02 microg/g and Cd = 0.52 microg/g) were significantly higher than those from patients without amalgam fillings (means: Pb = 26.87 microg/g and Cd = 0.41 microg/g). Our results show that brushing the teeth daily with toothpaste does not significantly decrease the concentration of both Pb and Cd. The mean concentrations of Pb and Cd do not vary significantly between the ages 20-30, 31-40, and 41-50, but both increased rapidly at age 51-60.

Spectrophotometric determination of selected cephalosporins in drug formulations using flow injection analysis.

A sensitive, accurate and rapid flow injection analysis (FIA) method for the determination of cefotaxime, cefuroxime, ceftriaxone, cefaclor, cefixime, ceftizoxime, and cephalexin is proposed. Aliquots of each cephalosporin were hydrolyzed for 15 min with 0.1 M NaOH at 80 degrees C and then oxidized with Fe3+ in sulfuric acid medium to produce Fe2+. The produced Fe2+ is then complexed by o-phenanthroline (o-phen) in citrate buffer at pH 4.2 to form the red complex, Fe(o-phen)3(2+), which exhibits an absorption maximum at 510 nm. Variables such as acidity, reagent concentrations, flow rate of reagents and other FI parameters were optimized to produce the most sensitive and reproducible results. The method was successfully applied to the analysis of pharmaceutical preparations. The results have been compared with those obtained using the official methods. Excellent agreement between the results of the proposed method and the official methods was obtained.