Serum cotinine as a measure of tobacco smoke exposure in children
To document passive smoke exposure, the authors measured concentrations of serum cotinine, a major metabolite of nicotine, in 38 young children and compared the results with the smoking histories of home residents. Cotinine was detected in 26 children (68%), of which ten had no household exposure according to a questionnaire. The serum cotinine concentration was significantly elevated in blacks compared with whites after controlling for the number of smokers in the home. After stratifying by race, there was a significant direct correlation between the serum cotinine concentration and the number of smokers in the home, the amount smoked by the mother, and the amount smoked by others in the home. We conclude that the serum cotinine concentration is a useful indicator of the actual exposure of young children to tobacco smoke and that unexplained racial differences in cotinine levels exist.
- Research Organization:
- Univ. of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill
- OSTI ID:
- 6185207
- Journal Information:
- Am. J. Dis. Child.; (United States), Vol. 11
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
NICOTINE
BLOOD CHEMISTRY
METABOLITES
TOBACCO SMOKES
HEALTH HAZARDS
BLACK AMERICANS
CHILDREN
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE
HUMAN POPULATIONS
AEROSOLS
AGE GROUPS
ALKALOIDS
AMINES
AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM AGENTS
AZINES
AZOLES
COLLOIDS
DISPERSIONS
DRUGS
HAZARDS
HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS
MINORITY GROUPS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
PARASYMPATHOLYTICS
PARASYMPATHOMIMETICS
POPULATIONS
PYRIDINES
PYRROLES
PYRROLIDINES
RESIDUES
SMOKES
SOLS
560306* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology- Man- (-1987)