ABSTRACT
Human hair samples from male and female people aged 6-85 years, as well as muscle of crabs (Callinectes sapidus and Callinectes bocourti) were collected from different fishing places along the Caribbean coastal shoreline of Colombia and analyzed for total mercury (T-Hg) in order to establish the impact of mercury-polluted sediments in Cartagena bay on the ecosystem. Hair T-Hg in inhabitants varied between 0.1 and 21.8 microg/g, with average and median of 1.52 microg/g and 1.1 microg/g, respectively. Differences between sampling locations were significant (P<0.01) and median values decreased in the order: Caño del Oro (1.5 microg/g)Subject(s)
Environmental Exposure/analysis
, Environmental Pollutants/analysis
, Mercury/analysis
, Adolescent
, Adult
, Aged
, Aged, 80 and over
, Animals
, Brachyura
, Child
, Colombia
, Female
, Geography
, Hair/chemistry
, Humans
, Male
, Middle Aged
, Muscles/chemistry