Keywords
Abstract
Tobacco is a major risk factor for developing COPD and has the greatest impact on disease progression. The aim of the study was to study the gender differences in nicotine dependence in patients with COPD. Materials and methods. We examined 160 patients with COPD aged 51 to 84 years: 65 women aged 51 to 74 years and 95 men aged 51 to 84 years. When a patient contacted a medical institution, a questionnaire was conducted to assess smoking behavior (Horne questionnaire), the degree of nicotine dependence (Fagerstrem test), and the motivation to quit smoking (Prohask questionnaire). Statistical data processing was performed using the SPSS application package. Results and discussion. Despite the disease and informing patients about the direct relationship between smoking and COPD, 78% of women and 68% of men with COPD continued to smoke. There were no differences in the level of nicotine dependence among men and women. In men, a high degree of nicotine dependence occurred in 43% of cases, in women — in 48% (p >0.05). The number of cigarettes smoked per day was 23 in men (22.8±1.4) and 20 in women (20.3±2.0), p>0.05. The motivation for quit smoking was high — 7.3±0.54 points: 7.6 in men and 6.9 points in women (p>0.05). The leading factors of smoking in patients with COPD were “Craving”, “Relaxation” and “Tension reduction”, while women had higher values of factors that determine both physical (“Craving”) and psychological dependence on nicotine (“Tension reduction”). The maximum values of the “Craving” factor characterizing the physical component of dependence were determined in 28% of cases in women and 13% in men (p<0.05). Efficiency smoking cessation was 24% in men and 13% in women (p<0.05), while most patients were unable to simultaneously give up smoking, they gradually reduced the number of ci garettes smoked per day: 60% of men and 75% women. Conclusion. Men and women with COPD were characterized by a similar level of nicotine addiction and did not differ in the number of cigarettes smoked per day, the motivation to quit smoking, but the effectiveness of smoking cessation in women was almost two times lo wer. The leading factors of smoking in patients with COPD were “Craving”, “Relaxation”, and “Tension reduction”, while women had higher values of factors that determine both physical and psychological dependence on nicotine.