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. 2001 Mar;91(3):432–436. doi: 10.2105/ajph.91.3.432

Sudden infant death syndrome, maternal smoking during pregnancy, and the cost-effectiveness of smoking cessation intervention.

H A Pollack 1
PMCID: PMC1446585  PMID: 11236409

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: This study analyzed the relationship between prenatal maternal smoking and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and examined the cost-effectiveness of smoking cessation interventions. METHODS: All recorded US singleton SIDS deaths from the 1995 birth cohort with birthweight exceeding 500 g were investigated. Infants with available maternal smoking data were matched with controls who survived to 1 year. Conditional logistic regression was used to estimate SIDS risks and accompanying cost-effectiveness. RESULTS: A total of 23.6% of singleton SIDS deaths appear to be attributable to prenatal maternal smoking. Typical cessation services available to all pregnant smokers could avert 108 SIDS deaths annually, at an estimated cost of $210,500 per life saved. CONCLUSIONS: Typical prenatal smoking cessation programs are highly cost-effective but have limited impact on the population incidence of SIDS.

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Selected References

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