Maternal snuff use and cotinine in late pregnancy-A validation study

Oral moist snuff is widely used in Sweden including during pregnancy. Maternal snuff use has been associated with increased risks of adverse pregnancy outcomes in epidemiological studies. Self-reported maternal snuff use has not been validated previously. The main objective of this study was to validate self-reported snuff use in pregnancy in a prospective cohort study and in the Medical Birth Register.

A prospective Swedish cohort study, 2005-2011, in which 572 women were asked to participate. Of 474 recruited women, 381 non-smokers (263 snuff users and 118 non-tobacco users) were included in the main analyses. Participants prospectively reported snuff use through questionnaires. Medical Birth Register data on the participants was obtained. Maternal urine cotinine was collected in late pregnancy and was used as a biomarker.

Cotinine levels in maternal urine confirmed a high validity of self-reported snuff use through questionnaires in late pregnancy; sensitivity and specificity values were 98% and 96%, respectively. In the Medical Birth Register, 45% of the snuff users were misclassified as nonusers in late pregnancy. There were significant differences in median cotinine levels between users of mini pouches and users of standard pouches, but there was a great difference of cotinine levels among users with similar number of pouches used daily.

Self-reported snuff use through questionnaires has high validity. In the Medical Birth Register, in late pregnancy, many snuff users were misclassified as nonusers. As a consequence, there is a risk of underestimating the harmful effects of snuff use when using late pregnancy Medical Birth Register data.