Will an adverse pregnancy outcome influence the risk of continued smoking in the next pregnancy?

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study was to study the effect of pregnancy outcomes on risks of continued smoking in subsequent pregnancy.

STUDY

DESIGN

Cohort study of first and second single births among 98,778 Swedish women who were daily smokers in first pregnancy.

RESULTS

In all, 70.2% of women continued to smoke in second pregnancy. Compared with women with a previous normal pregnancy outcome, risk of smoking in second pregnancy was increased among women with a previous small-for-gestational-age birth (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 95% CI 1.28 [95% CI 1.19-1.37]), and reduced among women who had experienced a stillbirth (OR 0.76 [95% CI 0.63-0.93]) or an infant death because of congenital malformations (OR 0.67 [95% CI 0.49-0.92]. A previous preterm birth, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and other causes of infant death did not influence risk.

CONCLUSION

A previous adverse pregnancy outcome has only a modest influence on smoking habits in the successive pregnancy.