• Susan Regan, Michele Reyen, Ann E Richards, Abigail C Lockhart, Aliza K Liebman, and Nancy A Rigotti.
• Tobacco Research and Treatment Center, General Medicine Division, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA 02114, USA. sregan@partners.org
• Nicotine Tob. Res. 2012 Jul 1;14(7):885-9.

IntroductionWe assessed whether providing inpatient smokers with nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) to relieve withdrawal symptoms while hospitalized was associated with self-initiated NRT use soon after hospital discharge.MethodsWe conducted an observational study of 1,895 cigarette smokers admitted to a large hospital over 24 months (July 2007 through June 2009) and seen by a tobacco counselor during hospitalization. Participants were surveyed at 2 weeks after discharge to assess postdischarge NRT use. We calculated adjusted rate ratios (ARRs) for the effect of NRT use in the hospital on the rate of NRT use after discharge, adjusting for gender, age, hospital service, intention to quit, baseline smoking level, length of stay, and counseling duration.Results62 percent (1,166/1,895) of enrolled participants received NRT during hospitalization. The survey response rate was 72%. 42 percent (544/1,293) of survey respondents reported initiating postdischarge NRT use within 2 weeks of discharge. NRT use after discharge was more likely to be reported by those who used it in hospital whether they had ever used it prior to hospitalization (ARR: 5.64, 95% CI: 3.95-8.05) or had never used it before (ARR: 4.68, 95% CI: 3.25-6.73).ConclusionsSmokers who received NRT during a hospitalization were more likely to use it after discharge compared with those who did not use NRT in hospital. By encouraging use of this effective cessation aid, supplementing counseling with NRT for hospitalized smokers may promote smoking cessation efforts after discharge.

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