Quantitation of sulfate and thiosulfate in clinical samples by ion chromatography.

For assay of serum sulfate, quantitation by ion conductimetry after separation by anion-exchange chromatography is the method of choice. In comparison to classical barium precipitation methods, chromatographic methods demonstrate increased precision, specificity and sensitivity, and they may be superior to spectrophotometric methods that rely on organic cation precipitation of sulfate. The increased sensitivity and specificity, as well as the inherent capacity of chromatographic methods for simultaneous determination of other anions, has led to its increasing use in the determination of excreted sulfate in clinical profiles of urinary anion composition. Ion chromatography can also be used to quantitate free sulfate in other clinical samples, including cerebrospinal fluid, sweat, saliva, breast milk and human tissues. Finally, ion chromatography shows promise as a more precise and sensitive method for measurement of total acid-labile sulfoesters and thiosulfate.