Controversy and Evidence about Nicotine Replacement Therapy ... : MCN: The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing (original) (raw)
FEATURE ARTICLE
Sharron Forest is a Neonatal Nurse Practitioner at Women & Children's Hospital Lake Charles, LA. Ms. Forest is currently a Doctoral Student at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. She can be reached via e-mail at [email protected].
The author has disclosed that there are no financial relationships related to this article.
MCN, The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing 35(2):p 89-95, March 2010. | DOI: 10.1097/NMC.0b013e3181cafba4
Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) is effective for smoking cessation, but much controversy surrounds its use during pregnancy. The importance of finding ways to help pregnant smokers quit is undisputed, since smoking during pregnancy causes harm to the mother and the fetus, with effects of smoke exposure extending into childhood. Researchers and providers are divided, however, with respect to opinions of safety and efficacy of NRT use in pregnant smokers. The research-based evidence on the topic is limited, but there are studies examining the efficacy of NRT in pregnancy. This article presents the evidence for this smoking cessation methodology in pregnancy.
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