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“This study covers 22 patients who had multiple severe sensitivities in that they were extremely intolerant to inhalants (particles and vapours), ingestants (food and chemicals) and their own endogenous, normally occurring yeast (Candida albicans). The removal of dental mercury (“amalgam”) fillings was the single most effective method of improving the health of these patients after other methods were instituted, i.e., avoidance, hyposensitization and nutritional improvement.”

“Concentrations of 13 trace elements (Ag, Br, Co, Cr, Cs, Fe, Hg, K, Na, Rb, Sc, Se, Zn) in isolated subcellular fractions (whole brain, nuclei, mitochondria, microsomes) of temporal lobe from autopsied Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients and norma controls were determined utilizing instrumental neutron activation analysis. Comparison of AD and controls revealed elevated Br (whole brain) and Hg (microsomes) and diminished Rb (whole brain, nuclear and microsomes), Se (microsomes) and Zn (nuclear) in AD. The elevated Br and Hg and diminished Rb are consistent with our previous studies in AD bulk brain specimens. Comparison of element ratios revealed increased Hg/Se, Hg/Zn and Zn/Se mass ratios in AD. Se and Zn play a protective role against Hg toxicity and our data suggest that they are utilized to detoxify Hg in the AD brain. Overall our studies suggest that Hg could be an important toxic element in AD. Whether Hg deposition in AD is a primary or secondary event remains to be determined.”

“Amalgam is the most extensively used implant material in dentistry. There have been no clinical trials of this substance and there are no epidemiological studies that allow any conclusions on the safety of amalgam fillings. Amalgam restorations continuously emit mercury vapour, which is absorbed in considerable quantities via the lungs. A comparison with dose-effect relationships, obtained in occupational studies, for certain effects on the kidneys and central nervous system (CNS), suggests that individuals with unusually high emission of mercury from amalgam fillings are at risk. It is unclear whether or not clinically significant effects could be expected. The limited sensitivity of available occupational studies, together with insufficient knowledge of possible host factors affecting resistance to mercury, implies that other more severe effects in susceptible individuals cannot be excluded. Information on long-term effects on organs other than brain or kidney is sparse. Animal studies suggest the possibility of immune system reactions to mercury, i.e. development of autoimmunity, that are not primarily dose-dependent, but rather depend on genetic susceptibility. From a toxicological point of view, amalgam is an unsuitable material for dental restorations.”

“The activity of the dentists generates nuisances due, for instance, to the use of biocontaminating aerosols and the emission of waste containing mercury. These two points are thoroughly reviewed in order to raise risk-awareness. As first and main victims of these nuisances, dentists must learn preventive methods and how to implement them. Anti-polluting methods are explained which are effective and easy to apply though sometimes not very well know and IDF recommendations are recalled.”

“In order to trace possible accumulations of mercury, three vervet monkeys received occlusal amalgam fillings, three others maxillary bone implants of amalgam, and three untreated monkeys served as controls. One year later all animals were sacrificed by transcardial perfusion with glutaraldehyde. Tissue sections from different organs were subjected to silver amplification by autometallography and analyzed at light and electron microscopical levels. It was found that amalgam fillings (total, 0.7-1.2 g) caused deposition of mercury in the following tissues: spinal ganglia, anterior pituitary, adrenal, medulla, liver, kidneys, lungs, and intestinal lymph glands. In monkeys with maxillary silver amalgam implants (total, 0.1-0.3 g), mercury was found in the same organs except for liver, lungs, and intestinal lymph glands. Organs from the three control animals were devoid of precipitate. To evaluate whether silver released from the corroding amalgam fillings added to the staining pattern, tissue sections were exposed to potassium cyanide prior to being autometallographically developed. This treatment removes all traces of silver, leaving mercury sulfide accumulation untouched. By comparing sections that had been exposed to cyanide with untreated parallels no difference was seen in the pattern confirming that mercury was the only catalyst present in the tissue. These results strongly support what has been suggested previously that dental fillings in primates cause absorption of mercury released from amalgam fillings through lungs and intestinal tract, and that depending on exposure mercury is distributed to most organs and will eventually be found in the central nervous system. The present data also show that silver released from the corroding filling is not absorbed.”

“In humans, the continuous release of Hg vapor from dental amalgam tooth restorations is markedly increased for prolonged periods after chewing. The present study establishes a time-course distribution for amalgam Hg in body tissues of adult and fetal sheep. Under general anesthesia, five pregnant ewes had twelve occlusal amalgam fillings containing radioactive 203Hg placed in teeth at 112 days gestation. Blood, amniotic fluid, feces, and urine specimens were collected at 1- to 3-day intervals for 16 days. From days 16-140 after amalgam placement (16-41 days for fetal lambs), tissue specimens were analyzed for radioactivity, and total Hg concentrations were calculated. Results demonstrate that Hg from dental amalgam will appear in maternal and fetal blood and amniotic fluid within 2 days after placement of amalgam tooth restorations. Excretion of some of this Hg will also commence within 2 days. All tissues examined displayed Hg accumulation. Highest concentrations of Hg from amalgam in the adult occurred in kidney and liver, whereas in the fetus the highest amalgam Hg concentrations appeared in liver and pituitary gland. The placenta progressively concentrated Hg as gestation advanced to term, and milk concentration of amalgam Hg postpartum provides a potential source of Hg exposure to the newborn. It is concluded that accumulation of amalgam Hg progresses in maternal and fetal tissues to a steady state with advancing gestation and is maintained. Dental amalgam usage as a tooth restorative material in pregnant women and children should be reconsidered.”

“In 10 healthy persons all amalgam fillings were replaced with gold inlays. Blood and urinary levels were measured on 10 occasions during a 4-month period before and a 12-month period after amalgam removal. These variables were also measured three times in 10 healthy controls. A strong statistically significant relation was found between plasma mercury values and both the total number of amalgam surfaces (r = 0.71, p = 0.0006) and the total surface area of the fillings (r = 0.73, p = 0.0004). In the immediate postremoval phase plasma mercury rose three- to four-fold, whereas the urinary and erythrocyte mercury rose about 50%. These peak values declined to the preremoval level at about 1 month. Twelve months after the removal the plasma and urinary mercury levels were significantly reduced to 50% and 25%, respectively, of the initial values for the experimental group. Apart from the significantly lower plasma selenium values 5 and 10 days after removal no significant differences were found with regard to plasma selenium or erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase either within or between the experimental and the control groups. A large number of supplementary biochemical analyses did not show any influence on organ functions or any differences between the groups before or after the amalgam removal. Amalgam fillings considerably contributed to the plasma and urinary mercury levels.”

“Recent misconceptions regarding Hg exposure from dental amalgams have been based on several questionable assumptions. The present paper reexamines earlier estimations of Hg daily dose from dental amalgam in order to elaborate and refine the mechanical and volumetric parameters of open-mouth Hg vapor sampling.”

“The mercury and selenium content in the hair of 13 ALS cases was studied by neutron activation analysis. The total mercury content of the hair was 3.70 +/- 2.73 ppm (mean +/- standard deviation) in the ALS patients as a whole, 4.46 +/- 3.16 ppm in the ALS patients from the middle of Kii Peninsula, and 2.49 +/- 1.38 ppm in the ALS patients from other region. As the comparison, mercury content was 2.43 +/- 0.79 ppm in the patients with Parkinsonism, and 2.10 +/- 1.13 ppm in the patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The selenium content of the hair was 0.36 +/- 0.35 ppm for all ALS patients as a whole, 0.45 +/- 0.25 ppm in the ALS patients from the middle of the Kii Peninsula, and 0.21 +/- 0.47 ppm in the ALS from other region. There were no cases with higher values than mean values of control group, except one case from other regions. It is well known that the selenium decreases the toxicity of mercury in the human body. From these data mercury with low content of selenium might be one of the environmental factors which are thought to be involved in producing of ALS.”

“The difficulties associated with estimations of daily doses of inhaled mercury vapor released from dental amalgam are considerable. Existing data are often unreliable, especially if they are based on a single or a small series of samples of intra-oral concentrations of mercury vapor before, during, and after chewing stimulation. In the present paper, the aim was to obtain a more representative estimation of the daily dose of mercury vapor inhaled from amalgam fillings by measurement of amounts of mercury vapor released in the oral cavity during 24 h, under conditions that were as normal as possible. A series of measurements was carried out on each of 15 subjects, with at least nine occlusal surfaces restored with dental amalgam, and on five subjects without any amalgam restorations. The subjects had to follow a standardized schedule for 24 h, whereby they ate, drank, and brushed their teeth at pre-determined time periods. The amount of mercury vapor released per time unit was measured at intervals of 30-45 min by means of a measuring system based on atomic absorption spectrophotometry. None of the subjects was professionally exposed to mercury, and all of their amalgam fillings were more than one year old. Study casts were made for each subject, and the area of the amalgam surfaces was measured. Samples of urine and saliva were analyzed so that values for the mercury concentrations and the rate of release of mercury into saliva could be obtained. The average frequency of fish meals per month was noted.” (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)