TOXICOLOGICAL PROFILE FOR CHROMIUM - Davidborowski.com

CHROMIUM 1342. HEALTH EFFECTS2.3.2.2 Oral ExposureAutopsy studies in the United States indicate that chromium concentrations in the body are highest inkidney, liver, lung, aorta, heart, pancreas, and spleen at birth and tend to decrease with age. The levels inliver and kidney declined after the second decade of life. The aorta, heart, and spleen levels declinedrapidly between the first 45 days of life and 10 years, with low levels persisting throughout life. Thelevel in the lung declined early, but increased again from mid life to old age (Schroeder et al. 1962).The distribution of chromium in human body tissue after acute oral exposure was determined in the caseof a 14-year-old boy who ingested 7.5 mg chromium(VI)/kg as potassium dichromate. Despite extensivetreatment by dialysis and the use of the chelating agent British antilewisite, the boy died eight days afteradmission to the hospital. Upon autopsy, the chromium concentrations were as follows: liver,2.94 mg/100 cc (normal, 0.016 mg/100 cc); kidneys, 0.64 and 0.82 mg/100 cc (normal, 0.06 mg/100 cc);and brain, 0.06 mg/100 cc (normal, 0.002 mg/100 cc) (Kaufman et al. 1970). Although these data wereobtained after extensive treatment to rid the body of excess chromium, the levels of chromium remainingafter the treatment clearly demonstrate that these tissues absorbed at least these concentrations after anacute, lethal ingestion of a chromium(VI) compound.Chromium may be transferred to infants via breast milk as indicated by breast milk levels of chromium inwomen exposed occupationally (Shmitova 1980) or via normal levels in the diet (Casey and Hambidge1984). It has been demonstrated that in healthy women, the levels of chromium measured in breast milkare independent of serum chromium levels, urinary chromium excretion, or dietary intake of chromium(Anderson et al. 1993, Mohamedshah et al. 1998), but others (Engelhardt et al. 1990) have disputed thisobservation.The tissue distribution of chromium was studied in rats administered chromium from a variety of sources.In one experiment, sodium chromate in water was administered by gavage for 7 days at 0, 1.2, 2.3, or5.8 mg chromium(VI)/kg/day. Very little chromium (generally