The complex analytical method for assessment of passive smokers' exposure to carbon monoxide

Carbon monoxide (CO) is one of the toxic constituents in tobacco smoke. The aim of the study was to evaluate a complex analytical method that allows quantification of the exposure of passive smokers to CO. The exposed volunteers were placed in the model room where portions of cigarettes (5, 10, or 15 cigarettes every 30 or 60 min over 4 h) were smoked using a homemade smoking machine. The concentrations of CO and of the ventilation marker (methane) were monitored for the duration of each experiment. CO and methane were analyzed on-line using GC-FID with methanization. Carboxyhemoglobin (COHb) was analyzed twice: just before and after the experiment. After hemolysis of a 100-microL blood sample, CO was quantitatively released by adding 10% K3[Fe(CN)6] inside a small reactor and under stable pressure transported through a microtube with an absorbing agent on a chromatography loop. The proposed analytical method allows us to quantify exposure of passive smokers by measuring the dose-effect correlation. We observed that increasing COHb levels were directly correlated with the CO concentration in the air, but were also intermediately correlated with the frequency and number of smoked cigarettes and with the ventilation coefficient.