Pregnant women

Nine out of ten adult smokers started smoking before the age of 18, and nicotine dependence is established rapidly even among adolescents. In addition, about 75% of adolescent smokers have made serious attempts to quit and have failed.

Clinicians should assess tobacco use among adolescents and offer cessation counseling. Little evidence is available about the effectiveness of bupropion or nicotine replacement for the adolescent smoker, but there is no evidence that these products are harmful to children or teens.

Pharmacotherapy may be used if you are confident of the patient's tobacco dependence and intention to quit. However, when opting for these treatments, consider such factors as the patient's body weight, degree of dependence, and number of cigarettes smoked per day.