Biological Monitoring

DEFINITION Biological monitoring can be defined as a regular measuring activity where selected, validated indicators of the uptake of toxic substances are determined in order to prevent health impairment. It should not be confused with the early detection of health impairment, a wider concept encompassing several aspects of health screening and early diagnosis. In the literature, the use of the term biological monitoring has not been consistent. Some have used this concept to cover some physiological responses such as pulmonary function tests and even tests for the early diagnosis of disease in addition to different biochemical measurements, while others have considered biological monitoring to be mainly the biochemical measurements of concentrations of toxic substances, their metabolites or their specific early effects. In this presentation, we have used the latter concept.