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Abstract Introduction Exposure to toxic metals, e.g. cadmium, mercury and lead, is very common due to mining activities. These metals can be either liberated from the soil, produced as a main or by-products of processing, or are used as an extraction agent. The exposure to toxic metals is associated with many adverse health effects including cancer and neurological diseases. Monitoring of toxic metal levels in biological matrices such as blood is one of the key elements for exposure assessment. The disadvantages of generally used venous blood samples are the relatively high costs due to medical personnel, sample cooling, etc. To overcome this, microsampling methods are a promising alternative. The goal of this review is the evaluation of the current knowledge on toxic metal biomonitoring using microsampling with special emphasis on mining. Methods The existing literature was reviewed for studies that apply microsampling for toxic metal biomonitoring using scientific databases. Results Multiple sampling devices (e.g. dried blood spots) have been used for toxic metal biomonitoring. Major challenges included sensitivity, reproducibility and background contamination of the sampling material. Few studies have applied microsampling for biomonitoring of toxic metals in mining areas in South America, Asia and Africa. Thus far, microsampling methods have not been included in regular biomonitoring programs. Conclusions Although the research and use of microsampling-assisted toxic metal biomonitoring is intensifying, standardization and field applicability of these methods in mining areas still needs to be demonstrated. Nevertheless, these tools can help to improve miners’ health, especially in low- and middle-income countries.
Rakete et al. (Mon,) studied this question.