Smoking cessation in pregnant women

Cigarette smoking is considered the most significant modifiable cause of ad verse pregnancy outcomes in US women. Despite these well-known adverse effe cts, many women fail to quit smoking during pregnancy. Socially disadvantag ed women are at es;especially high risk for continued smoking. Brief office -based interventions by physicians have shown a doubling of cessation in pr egnant women, so the potential impact across patient populations is conside rable. Recommended steps for physician intervention include the following: asking about smoking, advising smokers to stop, assisting patients in stopp ing, and arranging followup. Relapse prevention methods using office-based and social support systems are also important to improve long-term maintena nce of cessation in women who do quit smoking during pregnancy. Disseminati on of office-based cessation systems with potential use of pharmacologic th erapies and in combination with community-based interventions will help inc rease cessation rates in pregnant smokers. These combined efforts will help remedy the public health burden of fetal exposure to tobacco.