Bonanno, L.; Freeman, N.; Lioy, P.; Pellizzari, E.; Quackenboss, J.; Paschal, D. Author Information

Sir—In May 1996, the New Mexico Department of Health reported one case of mercury poisoning associated with the use of a beauty lotion produced in Mexico. The lotion, marketed as ‘Crema de Belleza’, listed calomel as an ingredient without indicating its concentration. Laboratory testing by the National Public Health Laboratory in Tamaulipas, Mexico, showed that the lotion contained 6‐10% mercury by weight. 1 We performed a cross-sectional study at three Women, Infant and Children’s (WIC) clinics in Dona Ana County, New Mexico. Our goals were to determine the prevalence of lotion use in selected New Mexico‐Mexico border communities, to determine whether lotion users had excessive amounts of mercury in their urine, and to document reported adverse health effects associated with lotion use. The clinics were chosen because of their location near the US‐Mexico border and the large number of patients typically seen at each clinic. Using a brief prescreening questionnaire, we interviewed all 185 women who visited the three WIC clinics over a 3-day period to identify users of the lotion. Using a structured questionnaire, we interviewed the five women who identified themselves as current users of the lotion and selected a convenience sample of 20 women who identified themselves as non-users in order to obtain comparison data. Current users were arbitrarily defined as people who had applied the lotion to their skin within the previous year. All others were defined as non-users. The questionnaire requested demographic information, as well as information about the duration and frequency of lotion use, other potential sources of mercury exposure and symptoms associated with mercury toxicity. 2 We collected spot urine samples from 23 of the 25 participants. Urine samples were analysed for total mercury and creatinine. The 25 study participants ranged in age from 18 to 56 years, with a median age of 31 years for users and 29.5 years for non-users. All participants were female; all users and 95% of non-users were of Hispanic origin. All users purchased the lotion from pharmacies in Mexico. The median duration of lotion use was 7 weeks, and the median frequency of use was seven times per week. Users most often applied the lotion to their face. We estimated the prevalence of lotion use among women attending the WIC clinics to be 2.7%. Urine mercury levels for beauty lotion users

A certain volume, 2S, of sample solution is withdrawn and used up to obtain the scale reading, R. A volume, S. containing Q ml standard of concentration W is added to the remainder of the sample solution and the process repeated several times. A plot of R versus number of steps is produced and the straight line extrapolated to give the zero intercept at the X-axis. This (negative) value, P, and the data above are used to calculate the concentration, C, of the sought-for substance in the sample from: C = (PQW)/(PS−V+S). The graph yields a straight line only when the volume withdrawn is twice that replaced. A computer program is given for obtaining the best fitting line via least square approximation and performing the calculations to print out the result.

Improved techniques for micro and enrichment extractions are described. Molten organic compounds are employed as solvents and removal of the extracted material is facilitated after solidification of the solvent. “Homogeneous extraction” has been achieved by using solid solvents exhibiting increased solubility at elevated temperatures or by volatilization of an added mediating solvent.