Relationship between exposure to heavy metals and prevalence of renal dysfunction.

Total proteinuria (biuret method) and the urinary excretion of specific proteins (albumin, transferrin, orosomucoid and IgG measured by an automated immunoprecipitin reaction and beta 2-microglobulin determined by radioimmunoassay) have been assessed in four groups of workers: a control group (n = 88) and a group exposed to cadmium (n = 148), mercury vapour (n = 63) and lead (n = 25) respectively. The results demonstrate that a moderate exposure to lead (lead concentration in blood < 62 micrograms/100 ml) does not change the prevalence of renal dysfunction, whereas mercury vapour exposure increases the prevalence of subjects with excessive excretion of albumin (> 12 mg/g creatinine), orosomucoid (> 4.35 mg/g creat.) and IgG (> 3.5 mg/g creat.). Besides an increased excretion of beta 2-microglobulin (> 200 micrograms/g creat.) workers exposed to cadmium excrete a greater amount of high molecular weight proteins. An increased excretion of urinary proteins occurs when mercury and cadmium level in urine exceeds 50 and 10 micrograms/g creatinine respectively.