Mercury Occupational Exposure, Random, Urine
Use
Detecting mercury toxicity due to occupational exposure. The correlation between the levels of mercury excretion in the urine and clinical symptoms is considered poor. Organic mercury may metabolize to inorganic mercury and contribute to urinary levels; dietary seafood can contribute up to ~30% of urinary mercury. Daily urine excretion above 50 µg/day indicates significant exposure (per WHO). Pre-shift Biological Exposure Index (BEI) for mercury/creatinine is <35 µg/g.
Special Instructions
Patient preparation: do not collect specimen for 96 hours after administration of gadolinium- or iodine-based contrast media. Collection supplies: clean plastic urine container with no metal cap or glued insert; submission container: plastic 10 mL urine tube or clean plastic aliquot container with no metal cap or glued insert. Metals Analysis Specimen Collection and Transport instructions should be followed. NY State available: Yes.
Limitations
Specimens will be evaluated for suitability. Mercury urinary levels may not correlate well with clinical symptoms. Seafood consumption and metabolism dynamics (e.g. methylmercury demethylation) affect urinary mercury interpretation.
New York Approved
Methodology
Mass Spectrometry (ICP-MS/MS)
Biomarkers
LOINC Codes
- 13465-0
- 2161-8
- 13465-0
Result Turnaround Time
2-4 days
Related Documents
For more information, please review the documents below
Specimen
Urine
Volume
3 mL
Minimum Volume
Not provided
Container
Clean plastic urine container with no metal cap or glued insert; submission: plastic 10‑mL urine tube or clean plastic aliquot container with no metal cap or glued insert
Collection Instructions
Collect a random urine specimen; do not collect within 96 hours of gadolinium- or iodine-based contrast media; see Metals Analysis Specimen Collection and Transport for complete instructions.
Patient Preparation
Avoid specimen collection for 96 hours after gadolinium- or iodine-containing contrast media.
Causes for Rejection
All specimens will be evaluated at Mayo Clinic Laboratories for test suitability.
Stability Requirements
| Temperature | Period |
|---|---|
| Refrigerated | 7 days |
| Frozen | 7 days |