Background: Smoking is currently a leading public health priority. Profiling smokers allows for adequate intervention strategies and it is important to assess smokers' motivation.
Aims: To calculate the rate of smokers in 4 files from 3 Health Centres in Coimbra and characterise smokers in terms of demographics, consumption pattern, motivation for smoking cessation and co -morbidities. Investigate the relationship between motivation to stop smoking and age, gender, consumption and age at starting smoking and cardiovascular, respiratory and psychiatric co -morbidities.
Methods: Descriptive study with analytical component. Accessible population: 15 -65 year old patients from 4 files from 3 Health Centres in Coimbra seen July - August 2007. Data treatment: SPSS 17.
Results: 224 randomly interviewed patients, 64.3% women; mean age 44.9 years old. Rate of smokers was 17% (52.63% female). Smokers' mean age was 39.4 years old. The mean age at starting smoking was 17.2 years old (16.4 in men). Mean cigarette consumption was 17.5/day (13.3 in women). 47.4% was poorly motivated, 52.6% moderate/highly motivated. 50% of the smokers had co -morbidities. There was no association between any of these factors and smoking cessation motivation.
Discussion/conclusions: The results are similar to other national studies. There were more younger female smokers than male, but females smoked fewer cigarettes/day. In this study the most frequent co- -morbidities were cardiovascular and psychiatric. Only half of the smokers were motivated to stop smoking.