Prevalence of smoking before and during pregnancy and changes in this habit during pregnancy in Northwest Russia: a Murmansk county birth registry study

BackgroundSmoking during pregnancy leads to adverse maternal and birth outcomes. However, the prevalence of smoking among women in Russia has increased from < 5 % in the 1980s to > 20 % in the 2000s. We conducted a registry-based study in Murmansk County, Northwest Russia. Our aims were twofold: (i) assess the prevalence of smoking before and during pregnancy; and (ii) examine the socio-demographic factors associated with giving up smoking or reducing the number of …