A simple, sensitive analytical method for platinum trace determination in human urine

• A simple and robust method for urinary platinum determination is proposed.
• It represents a diagnostic tool for biomonitoring occupational exposure to platinum.
• Only careful handling and common lab equipments are required for sample digestion.
• Sensitive ICP–MS measurements were performed to detect Pt-traces.
• Biomonitoring of hospital workers exposed to Pt-based anticancer agents was performed.

Quantification of platinum in human urine is a valuable technique for assessing occupational and environmental exposure to platinum. We hereby present a simple and sensitive method to monitor urinary platinum in hospital workers exposed to platinum-based anticancer agents. This method consists in: i) the sample digestion with an ultrapure HNO3/HCl (5:1) mixture in a sonicator for 2 h, and ii) the Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (ICP–MS) platinum determination on the 1:10 diluted solutions. Sample pre-treatment is simpler and faster when compared to other published procedures, which are typically multistep and time-consuming and often require expensive equipments. The ICP–MS analysis of all pre-treated samples shows good selectivity, sensitivity, repeatability and recoveries. It is noteworthy that in the present case both standard addition mode and the direct platinum determination with reference to an external calibration curve give satisfactory results for urinary platinum, while the standard addition mode is typically required in the literature methods.