Perceived support to stay quit: what happens after delivery?

To assess whether perceived changes in postpartum support were associated with postpartum return to smoking.

This is a prospective repeated measures, mixed methods observational study. Sixty-five women who smoked prior to pregnancy were recruited at delivery and surveyed at 2, 6, 12, and 24 weeks postpartum; in-depth interviews were conducted when participants reported smoking.

Fifty-two percent self identified as White, non-Hispanic. Forty-seven percent resumed smoking by 24 weeks postpartum. Women who had returned to smoking by 24 weeks had a significantly larger decrease in perceived smoking-specific support than women who remained abstinent (p<0.001). By 24-week postpartum follow-up, only 24% of women reported that an obstetric clinician had discussed how to quit/stay quit. When qualitatively interviewed, more than half of women reported having no one to support them to stay quit or quit smoking.

Following delivery, women lack needed smoking-specific support. Decline in perceived smoking-specific support from family and friends is associated with postpartum smoking resumption.