88 passive smoking and urine cotinine levels in greek children

ABSTRACT The high prevalence of cigarette smoking in Greece made worth an attempt to documenting passive smoking among children. A precoded questionnaire was completed by three

paediatricians for 565 randomly selected attenders in a 24-hours walk-in outpatient clinic. In all 565 children urine cotinine levels were measured by radioimmunoassay and standardised by

the cotinine / creatinine ratio. It was found that: 1. Most Greek children (80%) are passive smokers as it was confirmed by the elevated urine cotinine/creatinine ratio (53.4 ±74.3 ng/mg).

2. In 44% of the households mother was the source of indoor popution by cigarette smoke, alone (11%) or along with father (33%). 3. From variant and regression analysis a statistically

significant association was identified between urine cotinine levels in children and the following main factors by descending, order of p values: number of smokers at home (positive),

child's age (negative), number of cigarettes/ day (positive), surface of household (negative), maternal education (negative). In conclusion antismoking compaing has to be reinforced in

Greece and paediatricians are urged to actively participate. ARTICLE PDF AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * 1st Dept. of Paediatrics, Athens University, Children's Hosp.

“Aghia Sophia”, Athens, 115–27, Greece Chryssa Bakoula, Despina Lazopoulou, Mary Theodoridou & Nikolas Matsaniotis Authors * Chryssa Bakoula View author publications You can also search

for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Despina Lazopoulou View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Mary Theodoridou View author publications

You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar * Nikolas Matsaniotis View author publications You can also search for this author inPubMed Google Scholar RIGHTS AND PERMISSIONS

Reprints and permissions ABOUT THIS ARTICLE CITE THIS ARTICLE Bakoula, C., Lazopoulou, D., Theodoridou, M. _et al._ 88 PASSIVE SMOKING AND URINE COTININE LEVELS IN GREEK CHILDREN. _Pediatr

Res_ 30, 642 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199112000-00118 Download citation * Issue Date: 01 December 1991 * DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199112000-00118 SHARE THIS

ARTICLE Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content: Get shareable link Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article. Copy to clipboard

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative