抄録
The change of mercury concentration in the urine was investigated and discussed in relation to mercury concentration of working environment, length of period of employment and sampling method of urine specimens. After six hours stay in a work room with 0.16mg/m3 of mercury concentration, seven young men, who had never occupationally been exposed to mercury, had the highest excretion of mercury in the urine soon after the cessation of exposure for three hours. Urine specimens were collected from workers who had been exposed to mercury in the following way; at attendance on workshop after holiday, from 8.30 A.M. to noon and from noon to 3.30 P.M. In the case of low mercury concentration in the environment (0.2mg/m3), the mercury concentration in the urine at attendance after holiday reflected both the mercury concentration of environmental air and the length of years of employment. The amount of excreted mercury per hour in the daytime was a proportional to the logarithm of years of employment. In the case of high mercury concentration (1.0mg/m3), these two indicators under discussion seemed to be influenced mainly by the environmental condition.
