Abstract

The aim of this retrospective cohort study was to assess documented nicotine use history, withdrawal, and intervention with nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) for patients admitted to a quaternary children’s hospital who tested positive for cotinine. Patients tested positive for cotinine during 26 of 220 (12%) admissions in which cotinine testing was done. The electronic medical records (EMRs) of these 26 admissions (25 eligible patients; one patient admitted twice) were reviewed for documentation of tobacco product use history, cotinine urine test results, nicotine-related withdrawal symptoms, and prescription of NRT. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Most patients were admitted for overdose or intentional ingestion. 25 of 26 (96%) had tobacco use history documented, and eight (32%) had incongruent documentation. Two patients (50%) with documented nicotine withdrawal were prescribed NRT. This study illustrates missed opportunities to engage patients in addressing tobacco use.

Keywords: Cotinine, tobacco use, nicotine use, pediatric, nicotine replacement therapy, vaping

How to Cite:

Schmuhl, K. K., Golec, A. S., Bonny, A. E., Manos, B. E., Merianos, A. L., Stull, S. W. & Ebersole, A. M., (2025) “Cotinine Testing as a Component of Screening for Tobacco use in a Pediatric Hospital”, Health Behavior Research 8(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.4148/2572-1836.1284