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The prevalence of cigarette smoking in people with pain is higher than in the general population. Situational pain has both been found to motivate smoking behavior and been associated with relapse; furthermore, cigarette smoking is a risk factor in the onset and progression of pain, thus creating a vicious cycle. Although sustained quit attempts are associated with overall reductions in pain, early nicotine withdrawal could increase pain reactivity, potentially contributing to failure to quit. To determine whether nicotine withdrawal does increase pain, researchers randomized daily smokers to continued smoking, extended smoking abstinence (12–24 hours), or short-term smoking abstinence (2 hours). Smoking status was confirmed with measures o…