Smoking Pattern and Exhaled Carbon Monoxide for Patients Visiting the Tobacco Cessation Center in District Kathua of Jammu and Kashmir (UT), India (SpeCTcc Study)

Abstract Objective: We intended to explore the demographic and smoking patterns and the association of exhaled carbon monoxide (CO) with nicotine use disorder among the adult population of the Kathua region of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, India, who visited the tobacco cessation center (TCC). Methods: We evaluated a regional representative sample of 189 adult patients (176 males and 13 females) who visited the TCC. Results: The mean age ± standard deviation (SD) of patients who visited TCC was 52.87 ± 14.67 years, and the mean duration ± SD of smoking tobacco was 23.23 ± 10.92 years. The exhaled CO was significantly correlated with participants who smoke early in the morning ( r 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.511 0.396–0.609, p < 0.001), those with the number of cigarettes/day ( r 95% CI = 0.868 0.827–0.899, p < 0.001), and those with Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND) score ( r 95% CI = 0.814 0.760–0.858, p < 0.001). But the significant association was only reported with early morning smoking (odds ratio OR; 95% CI = 0.144, 0.029–0.72, p < 0.05), the number of cigarettes/day (OR 95% CI = 2.097 1.391–3.159, p < 0.001), and FTND score (OR 95% CI = 3.420 2.153–5.483, p < 0.001). Conclusion: There were demographic variances in patients who visited the TCC compared to those in the community. The association of exhaled CO with nicotine dependency was well-established, and exhaled CO could be used as a noninvasive marker.