[Evaluation of infants and younger children passive smoking at home and prevalence of their lower respiratory tract infectious].

The nicotine's metabolites were determined in urine of 92 children--59 children of smoking parents (SP) and 33 of non-smoking parents (NSP). The level of metabolites of nicotine and the ratio of the nicotine's metabolites to creatinine concentration were analyzed in infants (older than 5 months) and children 2-4 years old. Moreover the frequency of bronchitis and pneumonia in children was estimated on the basis of the interview with their parents. The nicotine's metabolites concentration was significantly higher in urine of children of SP than in urine of NSP children, as well in the group of infants as in children aged 2 to 4 years. Respiratory tract infections were frequent in 69.4% of SP children and in 21.1% of NSP children. In addition, the mean and the highest level of metabolites of nicotine in urine of SP children were multiple higher in comparison to the levels found in the group of NSP children suffering from the respiratory tract infections with equal frequency.