Human Metabolism of Bis(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate

To study the human metabolism of bis (2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate (DEHP) urine samples were analyzed from non-uremic psoriatic patients, uremic patients undergoing hemodialysis treatments and patients undergoing cardiac bypass surgery using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC). The urine of dialyzed non-uremic patients contained phthalic acid, mono (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate. Other compounds identified were p-hydroxy benzoic acid, m-hydroxy benzoic acid, o-hydroxy hippuric acid, o-hydroxy benzoic acid and benzoic acid, which may be either diet dependent normal urinary constituents or metabolites of bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate. The levels of phthalic acid and bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate found in the urine of patients who were on total body oxygenators containing a membrane during cardiac bypass surgery were comparable to levels obtained from non-uremic psoriatic patients. Significant levels of phthalic acid were detected in the urine of the uremic patients studied while mono (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and bis (2-ethylhexyl)-phthalate were present only in small amounts or were completely absent. In general, the urinary phthalate content of uremic patients increased with urinary volume.