Smoking is associated with post-operative complications but smokers
often under-report the amount they smoke. Our objective was to determine
whether a urine dipstick test could be used as a substitute for
quantitative cotinine assays to determine smoking status in patients. Between September 2013 and July 2014 we conducted a prospective
cohort study in which 127 consecutive patients undergoing a planned
foot and ankle arthrodesis or osteotomy were included. Patients
self-reported their smoking status and were classified as: ‘never
smoked’ (61 patients), ‘ex-smoker’ (46 patients), or ‘current smoker’ (20
patients). Urine samples were analysed with cotinine assays and
cotinine dipstick tests.Aims
Patients and Methods
