Migration of mercury from dental amalgam through human teeth
Ingestion of mercury from dental amalgams, with possible negative health effects, has generally been considered to occur directly from filling surfaces. The importance of mercury exposure by direct migration through the tooth was examined by X-ray fluorescence imaging of Hg, Ca, Zn and Cu in human teeth filled with amalgam for more than twenty years. The detection of Hg in areas of the tooth that once contained an active bloodstream and in calculus indicates that both exposure pathways should be considered as significant.
H.H. Harris, S. Vogt, H. Eastgate, D.G. Legnini, B. Hornberger, Z. Cai, B. Lai and P.A. Lay