Studies Need More than a Spot Sample: Variability of Urinary Metal Levels over Time

Julia R. Barrett, MS, ELS, a Madison, WI–based science writer and editor, is a member of the National Association of Science Writers and the Board of Editors in the Life Sciences. About This Article open Citation: Barrett JR. 2016. Studies need more than a spot sample: variability of urinary metal levels over time. Environ Health Perspect 124:A77; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.124-A77 Published: 1 April 2016 PDF Version (218 KB) Related EHP Article Variability of Metal Levels in Spot, First Morning, and 24-Hour Urine Samples over a 3-Month Period in Healthy Adult Chinese Men Yi-Xin Wang, Wei Feng, Qiang Zeng, Yang Sun, Peng Wang, Ling You, Pan Yang, Zhen Huang, Song-Lin Yu, and Wen-Qing Lu Within the field of environmental epidemiology, researchers often measure biomarkers in urine to estimate how much an individual has been exposed to a particular substance and whether that exposure is associated with a specific health outcome.1,2 However, several studies have indicated that one-time specimens may not provide an accurate basis for characterizing long-term exposures.1,3,4 A new study in EHP reports on the variation of urinary levels of seven metals within a small group of healthy adult Chinese men and demonstrates the value of accounting for variations both among and within individuals to avoid exposure misclassifications.5 Urine is the most frequently used specimen type because collection is noninvasive, poses no risk to study participants, and requires li...
Source: EHP Research - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Featured News Science Selection April 2016 Source Type: research