Trends in the profile of smokers registered in a national database from 2001 to 2006: changes in smoking habits.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: In 2001, an electronic medical record system was designed to collect data from smoking cessation services in France. By comparing two periods (2001-2003 and 2004-2006), this study assessed trends in the profile of smokers registered in the database. STUDY DESIGN: A cross-sectional analysis on the 33,219 smokers registered in the database in 2001. METHODS: Sociodemographic details, psychological and medical history, and characteristics of tobacco consumption at baseline were examined. RESULTS: The proportion of young smokers increased from 5.1% to 6.9%, and the proportion of underprivileged smokers increased from 9.3% to 10.9% between 2001-2003 and 2004-2006 (P<0.0001). The medical profile was unchanged, with about 37% of cases with tobacco-related diseases and 31% of cases with past depressive episodes in 2001-2003 and 2004-2006. The main finding was an increase in the mean concentration of carbon monoxide (CO) in expired air [from 18.8 parts per million (ppm) (SD 14.4) to 23.5 ppm (SD 14.1)], despite a decrease in the number of cigarettes smoked per day. The concentration of CO per cigarette also increased from 0.9 (SD 0.9) to 1.3 (SD 1.4). CONCLUSION: As the number of cigarettes smoked per day decreased, the increase in mean concentration of CO per cigarette implies that increases in cigarette prices may have led to new smoking habits and/or compensatory smoking.