Purge and Trap analysis of toluene in blood: comparison with the Head Space method.

A procedure for the determination of toluene in blood by the Purge and Trap method is described. The method, which had not been previously employed for the determination of volatile organic substances in biological fluids, has a linear range which extends up to at least 1500 micrograms/L, and gives results in excellent agreement with the conventional Head Space method; the detection limit was not exactly determined, but is estimated to be less than 7.5 micrograms/L, much better than for the Head Space method. Using the Purge and Trap method, we have observed the accumulation of toluene in the blood of experimental subjects as a result of a weekly exposure to toluene.