Fasteners from new and used children’s clothing bought in North Carolina were screened for releasable nickel and a subset was tested by the EN 1811 one-week synthetic-sweat method. Of 173 fasteners, 10 were positive on the spot test. Release rates, before and after the standard 0.1 adjustment, are printed for 21 items. Several exceeded the release limit the authors state as 0.5 mg Ni/cm2/week. The measurement is ion release, not total nickel in the fastener.
Key numbers
Figures below are copied as printed. Units are not converted. Species are not merged.
| Analyte | What was reported | Value | Unit | Basis | Where |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ni | Nickel release rate item 12: <0.12 | <0.12 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Adjusted EN 1811 nickel release rate item 12: <0.012 | <0.012 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration, after 0.1 adjustment factor | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Nickel release rate item 13: <0.12 | <0.12 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Adjusted EN 1811 nickel release rate item 13: <0.012 | <0.012 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration, after 0.1 adjustment factor | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Nickel release rate item 16: <0.12 | <0.12 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Adjusted EN 1811 nickel release rate item 16: <0.012 | <0.012 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration, after 0.1 adjustment factor | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Nickel release rate item 17: <0.12 | <0.12 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Adjusted EN 1811 nickel release rate item 17: <0.1 | <0.1 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration, after 0.1 adjustment factor | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Nickel release rate item 19: <0.12 | <0.12 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Adjusted EN 1811 nickel release rate item 19: <0.012 | <0.012 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration, after 0.1 adjustment factor | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Nickel release rate item 20: <0.12 | <0.12 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Adjusted EN 1811 nickel release rate item 20: <0.012 | <0.012 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration, after 0.1 adjustment factor | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Nickel release rate item 21: <0.12 | <0.12 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration | Table 2, p. 3 |
| Ni | Adjusted EN 1811 nickel release rate item 21: <0.012 | <0.012 | mg Ni/cm2/week | EN 1811 migration, after 0.1 adjustment factor | Table 2, p. 3 |
The structured evidence record for this source holds 47 copied values. The table above is the short set.
Methods (brief)
One fastener was taken from each garment, sized for newborns through age 5. Only skin-contact surfaces were tested. Non-contact metal was masked. Released nickel was measured by inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry and divided by area. The printed adjusted column is the measured rate times 0.1. Minimum surface area was 0.2 cm2 in a 5 ml flask.
Evidence fitness
These data support EN 1811 release rates are printed for 21 fasteners. Unadjusted rates above the authors’ stated 0.5 mg Ni/cm2/week limit include 6.6, 42, 13, 15, 8.2, 6.9, 58, 4.8, 120, 11, and 24 mg Ni/cm2/week; The paper states the European Nickel Directive limit as 0.5 mg Ni/cm2/week for direct and prolonged skin contact and 0.2 mg Ni/cm2/week for pierced parts; Detection limit is printed as 0.012 mg Ni/cm2/week after the 0.1 adjustment factor.
They do not support Does not measure total nickel content of the metal; Does not measure nickel in skin, blood, or urine; Does not show that these release rates caused dermatitis in the children who might wear the clothes; Garment brand names for the tested fasteners are not printed, so no brand-level release table can be built.
Limitations
The narrative says the rate is in micrograms per square centimetre per week, while tables and the stated directive limit use mg Ni/cm2/week. Both printings are preserved and no conversion was applied. Item 17’s adjusted result is printed as <0.1 rather than <0.012. Only 21 of 173 fasteners have quantitative release rates. False-positive and false-negative rates for the spot test (both printed as 30% in this study) are test-performance figures, not release concentrations.
Related evidence
Update history
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