Manganese, Urine

Urine (random)

20 mL

1.7 mL

Plastic urine container, no preservative

Confirm manganese exposure, toxicity, or poisoning by documenting excessive urine excretion of the metal. Also used to individualize manganese dosing in long-term parenteral nutrition, especially in liver disease, when biliary excretion is low, or when there is excessive gastrointestinal losses, such as in short bowel syndrome. Has been used to follow the success of chelation therapy with para-aminosalicylate sodium in manganism.

Levels in urine are so low that considerable error may be introduced by contamination. Manganese toxicity may leave residual neurologic damage after serum and urine levels have returned to normal, masking the original cause.

This test was developed and its performance characteristics determined by LabCorp. It has not been cleared or approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

Inductively-coupled plasma/mass spectrometry (ICP/MS)

Environmental exposure: 0.0−2.9 μg/L¹

Manganese poisoning through acute exposure may produce symptoms of fever, muscle pains, chills, and dryness of the mouth and throat. Chronic exposures to manganese may be evidenced by effects on the CNS (eg, headache, restlessness, irritability, personality change, hallucinations, and hearing impairment).² Levels may be reduced mildly in epilepsy and raised in hepatitis or jaundice.³ Urine manganese is used in conjunction with plasma manganese to evaluate possible toxicity or deficiency of manganese, an essential mineral. High concentrations can cause nausea, headache, and psychiatric disturbances with neurological damage similar to Parkinson disease. Normalization of plasma may not reverse the neurological damage.