Criticism of clinical trials

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Criticism of the clinical trials

In response to studies which assert amalgam safety, anti-amalgam groups, such as the International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology (IAOMT), state that these studies are poorly designed and raise ethical questions.

An analysis of the data collected during the studies showed that the authors of the studies ignored the drop in mercury excretion after two years in the urine in the children with amalgam fillings, even though the mercury exposure from amalgam remained the same or increased. This is explained in a response by Dr. Boyd Haley, to the 2006 publication, in JAMA, of the NIDCR-funded children's amalgam study.

According to Haley, this is evidence that these children are losing the ability to excrete mercury with increased exposure. This observation points to a strong limitation in the use of mercury concentrations within urine as an indicator of mercury exposure from amalgam (and, potentially, as an indicator of mercury concentration within the bloodstream).

Various diagnostic methods exist to detect the level of mercury in the body, including blood tests, urine tests, stool tests, saliva tests, DMPS or DMSA chelation urine tests, hair analysis and others. Opinions differ on which of these tests, if any, is the most accurate, although mainstream scientific research tends to place the most weight on chelation urine tests or stool tests when trying to assess chronic levels, or on blood or urine tests when trying to assess recent acute exposure.

The degree of accuracy which can be expected from urine based mercury tests given the observations cited above (outlining the drop in mercury excretion levels, after two years, in children with amalgam fillings despite a constant or increased magnitude in the level of mercury exposure) indicates the possibility of clear limitations in the efficacy of urine based mercury tests as an accurate statistic for the purposes of dental studies.

Dr. Smita

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