No valatille N-nitrosamines detected in blood and urine from patients ingesting daily large amounts of ammonium nitrate

Whole blood and urine from 23 patients ingesting ammonium nitrate daily in amounts varying from 2 multiplied by 5-9 g were analysed for volatile N-nitrosamines. By contrast with reports in the literature N-nitrosodimethylamine and N-nitrosodiethylamine were not found in blood (limit of detection 0 multiplied by 1 mu g/kg) but a trace of N-nitrosopyrrolidine was found in the blood of one subject. Small amounts of N-nitrosomorpholine in some blood samples and in one blank were believed to be formed during the analysis since morpholine had been added to the samples to indicate artefactural nitrosamine formation. Traces of N-nitrosodimethylamine (0 multiplied by 1 mu g/kg) were found in six of the 23 urine samples.