Assessment of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke in young adolescents following implementation of smoke-free policy in Italy

Pellegrini, M.; Rotolo, M.C.; La Grutta, S.; Cibella, F.; Garcia-Algar, O.; Bacosi, A.; Cuttitta, G.; Pacifici, R.; Pichini, S.

doi:10.1016/j.forsciint.2009.12.041

« Previous Next »Forensic Science International
Volume 196, Issue 1 , Pages 97-100, 20 March 2010

Assessment of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke in young adolescents following implementation of smoke-free policy in Italy

M. Pellegrini
- Department of Therapeutic Research and Medicines Evaluation, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, V.le Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
M.C. Rotolo
- Department of Therapeutic Research and Medicines Evaluation, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, V.le Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
S. La Grutta
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Biomedicina e Immunologia Molecolare, Palermo, Italy
F. Cibella
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Biomedicina e Immunologia Molecolare, Palermo, Italy
O. Garcia-Algar
- Unitat de Recerca Infància i Entorn (URIE), Paediatric Service, IMIM-Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, Spain
A. Bacosi
- Department of Therapeutic Research and Medicines Evaluation, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, V.le Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
G. Cuttitta
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Biomedicina e Immunologia Molecolare, Palermo, Italy
R. Pacifici
- Department of Therapeutic Research and Medicines Evaluation, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, V.le Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
S. Pichini
- Department of Therapeutic Research and Medicines Evaluation, Istituto Superiore di Sanitá, V.le Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +39 06 49903682; fax: +39 06 49902016.

Received 17 June 2009; accepted 5 August 2009. published online 08 January 2010.

Abstract

We investigated acute and chronic exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) in a cohort of young adolescents using urinary cotinine and hair nicotine testing after recent implementation of Italian smoke free legislation.

Study subjects were 372 Italian young adolescents, between 10 and 16 years of age from the principal city of Sicily, Palermo. Urine and hair samples were collected between November 2005 and May 2006, when the legislation to ban smoking in all the enclosed places of employment (including bars, restaurants, pubs) was completely enforced. An exhaustive questionnaire including sociodemographic characteristics and active and passive exposure to cigarette smoking was completed. Urinary cotinine was analyzed by radioimmunoassay and hair nicotine by a validated GC/MS method.

Based on urinary cotinine results, 2.1% and 89% of the study participants, respectively, showed non-exposure and low acute exposure to ETS, whereas only 1.6% presented very high exposure or a hidden active smoking habit in the recent past. Hair nicotine disclosed non-exposure and low exposure to ETS in 11.8% and 65.6% of the young adolescents, respectively, taking into consideration a larger time-window. High repeated exposure, suggesting active smoking in some cases was observed in 8.6% of the study subjects. Hair nicotine was inversely related to educational level of the adolescents’ parents.

Overall, due to the implementation of smoke-free legislation and information campaign against smoking, a significant trend toward low exposure to ETS was observed in this study cohort with no association between exposure to ETS and respiratory illnesses.

Keywords: Environmental tobacco smoke, Hair nicotine, Urinary cotinine