The Impact of Maternal Smoking on Fetal Outcome in Residents of the State of Hesse, Germany - Abstract
The consequences of maternal smoking of pregnant mothers on the fetus have been investigated in a population in the state of Hesse, Germany from 1990-2015. For the investigation a routine data collection with a total of 301.506 deliveries were analyzed. During the years 2011-2015 the investigation was focused on fetal malformation in relation to smoking (254 948 deliveries) and on the impact of smoking on duration of pregnancy and fetal weight.
Throughout the years 1990 -2015 the number of smokers decreased in the group of heavy smokers who smoked 10-19 and 20-29 cigarettes per day from 5.8 to 2.1 % and 2.3 to 0.4 % respectively, probably as a result of the antismoking campaign in Germany. The incidence of fetal malformations in relation to smoking mothers was not significantly elevated. Smoking had however a significant impact on the duration of pregnancy and the weight of the baby depending on the number of cigarettes smoked per day.
The decrease of smoking women during pregnancy during the past years is going to let us hope that women have realized the deleterious effect of smoking on their babies.