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Tobacco use during pregnancy among Alaska Natives in western Alaska
Caroline C Renner1, Christi A Patten, Gretchen E Day
1Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium, Office of Alaska Native Health Research, 4201 Tudor Centre Drive, Suite 105, Anchorage, AK 99508, USA. ccrenner@anmc.org
Objective:
To determine tobacco use rates during pregnancy among Alaska Natives residing on the Yukon-Kuskokwim (Y-K) Delta of western Alaska. Alaska Natives residing in this region use Iqmik, a unique form of smokeless tobacco (ST).
Study Design:
Retrospective cohort study. The medical records of the most recent consecutive 100 Alaska Native women delivering within the Y-K Health Corporation system in 2001 were abstracted for information on tobacco use during this pregnancy and basic demographics.
Results:
Of the 100 women, 24 did not use tobacco, 55 used ST only, 18 smoked cigarettes only, and 3 used both ST and smoked cigarettes during this pregnancy. Of the 58 who used ST, 22 used Iqmik only, 32 used commercial ST only, and 4 used both. The frequency of ST use increased significantly with age (p=0.007; OR=1.65 per 5-year increase in age, 95% CI 1.15 to 2.36), while the frequency of cigarette smoking tended to decrease with age (p=0.254; OR=0.79 per 5-year increase in age, 95% CI 0.53 to 1.18).
Conclusion:
A high proportion of Alaska Native women use tobacco during pregnancy. The rate of ST use (58%) among pregnant Alaska Native women is markedly higher than the prevalence of ST use (0.5%) among women in the general U.S. population.
