Detection of Zinc in Nail Samples of IronWelders

The current study was conducted to quantify zinc in nail samples of ironwelders from differentareas of Lahore, Pakistan. This study intended to assess nutritional deficiencies of zinc in welders.As nails serve a beneficial biomarker of concentrations of trace elements, hence in the presentstudy the nails of welders were usedfor monitoring. The total number of nail samples collectedfrom workers of ironwelding shops, were 40. In a standardized washing procedure the nailsamples were scrapped and cleaned of dust particles with nonionic detergent (Triton X-100) andthen nail samples were digested afterwards in acid mixture.The concentration of zinc wasevaluated by atomic absorption spectrophotometer. Theresults revealed that concentration of zincin nail samples ranged0.297–1.718mg/kg and averaged at0.88±0.39mg/kg which is below theideal zinc levels in nail samples.Correlation of zinc(mg/kg)wassignificant with age (0.214<0.5), weight (0.320< 0.5) andBody Mass Index(0.268< 0.5) of the welders, while a weakcorrelation ofzinc(mg/kg)was found with height (0.042< 0.5) of the welders.