Maternal Smoking Rates During Pregnancy Drop . . . A Little

Maternal smoking during pregnancy is associated with preterm delivery, low birth weight, and excess neonatal mortality; furthermore, infant exposure to secondhand smoke raises risk for respiratory infections and sudden infant death. To examine trends in preconceptual, antenatal, and postpartum cigarette smoking, investigators for the Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System collected self-reported data about smoking in more than 242,000 women who delivered live-born infants in 30 states and New York City (reported separately from New York State) from 2000 through 2005.

In 2005, at the 26 sites where data on this outcome were collected, 22.5% of women reported smoking before or during pregnancy or after delivery. At 16 sites, smoking preva…