The effects of amalgam restorations on plasma mercury levels and total antioxidant activity

Improper Waste Disposal of Silver-Mercury Amalgam

“…However, in many cases, there is no effective inspection agency to ensure that these safety practices are carried out. According to some authors (Marek 1990;Ö zdabak et al 2008), mercury evaporation occurs during treatment carried out on teeth with restorations containing silver and mercury amalgam. Used capsules that contained amalgam cannot be discarded into the environment because they are contaminated with mercury.…”

Effect of Bleaching on Mercury Release from Amalgam Fillings and Antioxidant Enzyme Activities: A Pilot Study

“…Inclusion criteria were the presence of all natural teeth (intact dentition), and the absence of caries and periodontal diseases, any restorations except amalgam as well as previous bleaching treatments. In order to control local and systemic factors that might affect body mercury concentrations and antioxidant levels, individuals meeting any of the following criteria were excluded from the study; systemic disorders, medication usage during the previous 3 months, smoking/alcohol habits (any present or past consumption of tobacco or alcohol), occupational exposure to mercury, placement of new amalgam restorations during the previous year, parafunctional habits (e.g., bruxism), consumption of fish/seafood during the previous month and frequent gum chewing (everyday, several times a day) . Subjects were also asked to avoid consumption of fish during the study to avoid any dietary or occupational conditions that might have an influence on the mercury levels.…”

“…Blood samples were collected from all participants using heparin as anticoagulant. Samples were centrifuged at 700 to 1,000× g for 10 minutes at 4°C, the white buffy coat was removed, and the yellow plasma layer was stored at −80°C until analysis …”

“…Bleaching chemicals are strong oxidizing agents which release oxygen and highly unstable radicals . It has been also reported that antioxidant enzyme systems are the most sensitive indices of hydrogen peroxide and mercury‐induced oxidative response …”

Biocompatibility of Dental Amalgams

“…Melchart et al (2008) reported the amount of inorganic mercury in erythrocytes and plasma as 0.37 ng/mL and 0.38 ng/mL, respectively [43], and this group reported the total plasma mercury level as 0.49 ng/mL. Nur Özdabak et al (2008) reported that dental amalgam restorations were the major source of plasma mercury (3.91 ng/mL), yet dental amalgam was not found to have a significant effect on plasma-total antioxidant activities [48]. The foregoing controversial results can be attributed to different methods used for evaluating the total plasma mercury concentrations and the influence of other mercury sources like diet, drinking water, and inhaled air, which might increase the blood mercury concentration.…”