INTEROVARIAN DIFFERENCES IN LEVELS OF COTININE, A MAJOR METABOLITE OFNICOTINE, IN WOMEN UNDERGOING IVF WHO ARE EXPOSED TO CIGARETTE-SMOKE

Purpose: Our purpose was to determine whether there is variation in le vels of follicular fluid (FF) cotinine between the two ovaries of wome n undergoing IVF-ET who are exposed to cigarette smoke. Methods: In 61 women, there were two to four determinations of FF cotinine levels fo r each of two follicles, one from each ovary. For each woman a t test for significant difference between the means of both ovaries was done to rest for interovarian variation. Results: Thirty-seven nonsmokers, 8 passive smokers, and 16 active smokers differed greatly (P < 0.0001) in mean FF cotinine levels: 13.0, 91.1, and 420.3 ng/ml, respectively , Fourteen women had significant differences, at the P = 0.025 level o r below, between their two ovaries, Five of them had differences signi ficant at the 0.001 level. Even so, the correlation between the cotini ne levels of the two ovaries was high. Conclusions: Cotinine uptake be tween the two ovaries of a woman may differ approximately one-fourth o f the rime, In spite of these differences, the overall correlation bet ween ovaries is high. The clear distinction in levels of FF cotinine a mong active, passive, and nonsmokers demonstrates the reliability of F F cotinine testing. Detection of cotinine in a large proportion of non smokers shows how pervasive nicotine is in the environment.