Interlaboratory comparison investigations (ICI) and external quality assurance schemes (EQUAS) for cadmium in urine and blood: Results from the HBM4EU project. 2021

Stefanie Nübler, and Marta Esteban López, and Argelia Castaño, and Hans Mol, and Moritz Schäfer, and Karin Haji-Abbas-Zarrabi, and Daniel Bury, and Holger M Koch, and Vincent Vaccher, and Jean-Philippe Antignac, and Darina Dvorakova, and Jana Hajslova, and Cathrine Thomsen, and Katrin Vorkamp, and Thomas Göen
Institute and Outpatient Clinic of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Henkestraße 9-11, 91054, Erlangen, Germany.

Human biomonitoring (HBM) of cadmium is essential to assess and prevent toxic exposure. Generally, low cadmium levels in urine and blood of the general population place particularly high demands on quality assurance and control measures (QA/QC) for cadmium determination. One of the aims of the HBM4EU project is to harmonize and advance HBM in Europe. Cadmium is one of the chemicals selected as a priority substance for HBM implementation in the 30 European countries under HBM4EU. For this purpose, analytical comparability and accuracy of the analytical laboratories of participating countries was investigated in a QA/QC programme comprising interlaboratory comparison investigations (ICI) and external quality assurance schemes (EQUAS). This paper presents the evaluation process and discusses the results of four ICI/EQUAS rounds for the determination of cadmium in urine and blood. The majority of the 43 participating laboratories achieved satisfactory results, although low limits of quantification were required to quantify Cd concentrations at general population exposure levels. The relative standard deviation of the participants' results obtained from all ICI and EQUAS runs ranged from 8 to 36% for cadmium in urine and 8-28% for cadmium in blood. Applying inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), using an internal standard, and eliminating molybdenum oxide interferences was favourable for the accurate determination of cadmium in urine and blood. Furthermore, the analysis of cadmium in urine was found to have a critical point at approximately 0.05 μg/l, below which variability increased and laboratory proficiency decreased. This QA/QC programme succeeded in establishing a network of laboratories with high analytical comparability and accuracy for the analysis of cadmium across 20 European countries.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D002104 Cadmium An element with atomic symbol Cd, atomic number 48, and atomic weight 112.41. It is a metal and ingestion will lead to CADMIUM POISONING.
D004781 Environmental Exposure The exposure to potentially harmful chemical, physical, or biological agents in the environment or to environmental factors that may include ionizing radiation, pathogenic organisms, or toxic chemicals. Exposure, Environmental,Environmental Exposures,Exposures, Environmental
D004784 Environmental Monitoring The monitoring of the level of toxins, chemical pollutants, microbial contaminants, or other harmful substances in the environment (soil, air, and water), workplace, or in the bodies of people and animals present in that environment. Monitoring, Environmental,Environmental Surveillance,Surveillance, Environmental
D005060 Europe The continent north of AFRICA, west of ASIA and east of the ATLANTIC OCEAN. Northern Europe,Southern Europe,Western Europe
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000079687 Biological Monitoring Monitoring of the level of toxins, chemical pollutants, microbial contaminants, or other harmful substances in the bodies of living organisms, by DIAGNOSTIC IMAGING or by analyzing BLOOD; URINE; BREAST MILK; SALIVA, etc. Bio-Monitoring,Biologic Monitoring,Biomonitoring,Monitoring, Biological,Bio Monitoring,Monitoring, Biologic

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