Determination of Lead in Blood

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Abstract
Blood lead level is the widely accepted index of lead poisoning. Atomic absorption spectrophotometry offers simple and rapid determination of blood lead. The sample preparation however presents problems due to limited blood availability, low normal blood lead level and non-availability of identical standards. Wet digestion, precipitation of proteins, chelation and extraction, whole blood or Triton X-100 diluted blood have been used for analysis of lead. Flameless atomic absorption technique using carbon rod or heated graphite atomizer have minimised the sample size and increased sensitivity. Triton X-100 dilution followed by flameless atomic absorption analysis is a simple and reliable method for the determination of lead in microquantities of blood. However, while using low temperature in the ashing cycle one must ensure that Triton X-100 does not give unspecific absorpiions.