title: Measurements of dermal uptake of nicotine directly from air and clothing.
abstract: In this preliminary study, we have investigated whether dermal uptake of nicotine directly from air or indirectly from clothing can be a meaningful exposure pathway. Two participants wearing only shorts and a third participant wearing clean cotton clothes were exposed to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), generated by mechanically "smoking" cigarettes, for three hours in a chamber while breathing clean air from head-enveloping hoods. The average nicotine concentration (420 μg/m3) was comparable to the highest levels reported for smoking sections of pubs. Urine samples were collected immediately before exposure and 60 hour post-exposure for bare-skinned participants. For the clothed participant, post-exposure urine samples were collected for 24 hour. This participant then entered the chamber for another three-hour exposure wearing a hood and clothes, including a shirt that had been exposed for five days to elevated nicotine levels. The urine samples were analyzed for nicotine and two metabolites-cotinine and 3OH-cotinine. Peak urinary cotinine and 3OH-cotinine concentrations for the bare-skinned participants were comparable to levels measured among non-smokers in hospitality environments before smoking bans. The amount of dermally absorbed nicotine for each bare-skinned participant was conservatively estimated at 570 μg, but may have been larger. For the participant wearing clean clothes, uptake was ~20 μg, and while wearing a shirt previously exposed to nicotine, uptake was ~80 μg. This study demonstrates meaningful dermal uptake of nicotine directly from air or from nicotine-exposed clothes. The findings are especially relevant for children in homes with smoking or vaping.
authors.affiliation: Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bekö
authors.affiliation: Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, MO, USA.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Morrison
authors.affiliation: Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark.|Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ, USA.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Weschler
authors.affiliation: Institute for Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the German Social Accident Insurance, Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: H M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Koch
authors.affiliation: Institute for Prevention and Occupational Medicine of the German Social Accident Insurance, Bochum, Germany.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pälmke
authors.affiliation: Fraunhofer WKI, Braunschweig, Germany.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Salthammer
authors.affiliation: Fraunhofer WKI, Braunschweig, Germany.
authors.forename: T
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-1594-7331
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schripp
authors.affiliation: Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark.
authors.forename: J
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-7697-7617
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Toftum
authors.affiliation: Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Clausen
mesh_terms: D000397:Air Pollution / Q000032:analysis*; D003020:Clothing; D003367:Cotinine / Q000652:urine; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000032:analysis*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009538:Nicotine / Q000032:analysis* / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000652:urine; D012867:Skin / Q000378:metabolism; D012869:Skin Absorption; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution; D009538:Nicotine; D003367:Cotinine
keywords: biomonitoring; e-cigarettes; exposure pathway; indoor environment; smoking; vaping