Determination of arsenic in hair using neutron activation

Arsenic concentrations were measured in scalp hair of three groups of people of a village in west of Iran. One group consisted of healthy subjects, the second of subjects with suspected arsenic poisoning and the third with people infected with arsenic poisoning. The measurements were carried out using neutron activation analysis at Tehran Research Reactor. Along with these measurements, the arsenic content of water sources used by the inhabitants were also measured. The measurements revealed that the average arsenic concentration in the healthy group was 0.2 +/- 0.07 ppm, in the suspected group was 4.9 +/- 0.5 ppm, in the infected group was 5.6 +/- 0.5 ppm and in water samples varied between 0.03 +/- 0.01 and 1.04 +/- 0.10 ppm.