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Umbilical cord blood cotinine and smoking during pregnancy

Journal of Perinatology volume 32, page 156 (2012)Cite this article

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We read with interest the paper by Wright TE et al.1 and we would like to add some conclusions reached by our group after a clinical research evaluating prenatal exposure to tobacco smoke by cotinine in cord blood.2

Prenatal tobacco exposure has been usually assessed using self-reported maternal questionnaire. Difficulties in differentiating passive tobacco exposure from active smoking (among there reluctant to admit active smoking or unconscious of passive exposure) have prompted the use of specific biomarkers to prevent bias in self-reported questionnaires.3, 4 Nicotine and its main metabolite (cotinine) have been used as biomarkers for second-hand smoke in conventional (blood and urine) and non-conventional matrices (saliva, meconium and hair).5 Cotinine presents a longer biological half-life than nicotine, and it is considered the best biochemical marker to differentiate between active and passive tobacco exposure. Moreover, the levels of cotinine have been found to be directly related with daily cigarette consumption.6

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References

  1. Wright TE, Milam KA, Rougee L, Tanaka MD, Collier AC . Agreement of umbilical cord drug and cotinine levels with maternal self-report of drug use and smoking during pregnancy. J Perinatol 2011; 31: 324–329.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Paediatrics Unit, Hospital del Mar, Barcelona, Spain

    O Garcia-Algar, C Puig, S Pichini, K Pallas & O Vall

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  1. O Garcia-Algar
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  2. C Puig
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  3. S Pichini
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  4. K Pallas
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  5. O Vall
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Correspondence to O Garcia-Algar.

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Garcia-Algar, O., Puig, C., Pichini, S. et al. Umbilical cord blood cotinine and smoking during pregnancy. J Perinatol 32, 156 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/jp.2011.94

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