The use of radiation to survey toxic elements in the body

Cadmium and lead are two toxic elements which represent a health hazard to man. Excretion of cadmium occurs slowly. Thus a measurement of the concentration of the element in the storage organ could be expected to provide a more realistic index of exposure and hence better correlation with clinical symptoms. An in vivo neutron activation analysis system suitable for determination of cadmium in liver and kidneys has been developed. Measurements of the lead concentration in the skeleton are of fundamental importance for estimating the total body burden of lead. An x-ray fluorescence system has been used to undertake in-vivo measurements of lead in bone. Both systems are described and their peformance assessed