Determination of creatinine-related urinary uracil excretion in children by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Excretion rates of uracil and thymine in children (n = 140) and circadian rhythms of urinary uracil excretion (n = 9) were investigated by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection. Excretion values were related to urinary creatinine determined by Jaffé's method. Creatinine-related uracil excretion was not dependent on age or sex. The values seemed to be distributed according to a Gaussian graph in both school children and those in hospital. The intra-individual range was 1.32-23.70 mg uracil per g creatinine over a four-day period in one subject. Uracil excretion seems to be somewhat lower during the night.