Abstract

This study was undertaken to evaluate the usefulness of a rapid micromethod for determination of serum calcium. In 1966 Connrty and Briggs presented a greatly improved manual spectrophotometric method based upon release of the bound calcium by means of protein precipitation and the complete masking of the response of the dye to magnesium by means of 8-quinolinol. Their method was applied to a rapid micromethod in which the process of deproteinization was omitted and only 50 microliters serum was used as a sample instead of 1ml. Clark-Collip method, Diehl-Ellingboe’s EDTA method, and a micromethod using orthocresolphthalein a colar regent were carried out with thirty samples to compare the results each other. On the other hand normal values of healthy Koreans, male 96, female 94, were surveyed by the above mentioned micromethod. The results were followings. 1. Clark-Collip method: mean 9.03 mg Diehl-Ellingboe method: mean 8.99 mg A rapid micromethod: mean 8.88 mg 2. Normal values of Koreans by the rapid micromethod: male 9.47±0.45 mg, female 8.79±0.41 mg%, without consideration of sex 9.14±0.53 mg% Serum calcium levels of Koreans appeared to be lower than those of whites.