An endemic peripheral vascular disorder resulting in gangrene of the l
ower extremities, especially of the feet, is called 'Blackfoot disease
(BFD)'. Clinically, the symptoms and signs of Blackfoot disease are s
imilar to those of Buerger's disease. In this study, the objective is
to examine the amount of arsenic, mercury, zinc, lead, and selenium in
urine samples from BFD patients. After pre-treatment with acids, the
samples were digested by means of a microwave oven. The determination
of arsenic mercury, zinc, lead and selenium were by hydride atomic abs
orption spectrometry (HAAS), cold vapor atomic absorption spectrometry
(CVAAS), flame atomic absorption spectrometry (FAAS), graphite furnac
e absorption spectrometry (GFAAS), respectively. The results indicated
that urinary arsenic, mercury and lead of the BFD patients were signi
ficantly higher than those of the normal controls, while urinary zinc
and selenium were significantly lower than those of the normal control
s. The possibility that these elements are involved in the etiology of
diseases is discussed. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science B.V.