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The factors contributing to mercury (7439976) exposure in dentists were further characterized and recommendations for minimizing exposure in the practice setting were presented. A total of 1,352 dentists participating in a urinary mercury screening conducted during a 4 day conference constituted the study group. Complete data sets were obtained from 1,277. This included completed questionnaires. Only 7.7% of the respondents were female. The females had a mean age of 40 while the male dentists had a mean age of 50. The females had been in practice a mean of 10.7 years and the male dentists, 22.8 years. General dentists made up 92.4% of the sample. The mean mercury concentration for all subjects was 4.94 micrograms of mercury per liter (microg/l). General dentists had a greater mean concentration (5.09microg/l) than specialists (3.1microg/l). Women reported having had significantly fewer accidental spills from mercury dispensers in the last year and had a mean urinary mercury concentration of 4.12microg/l compared with male dentists at 4.99microg/l. Mercury concentration increased with the length of practice from a mean of 4.83microg/l for the group practicing less than 5 years to a mean of 7.94microg/l for those who had practiced more than 40 years. No clear relationship was found for the type of flooring or ventilation systems used in offices, whether amalgam scrap was saved or discarded, or if it was saved, how it was stored.
Journal of the American Dental Association, 126(11):1502-1511, 1995. (30 references)
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