Role of tobacco exposure in the course of COVID‐19 disease and the impact of the disease on smoking behavior

BACKGROUND: The effect of COVID‐19 on smoking behavior is not fully known. Studies evaluating the link between smoking and COVID‐19 have controversial results. This study aims to evaluate patients' smoking status with COVID‐19 and the effect of COVID‐19 on smoking behavior. METHODS: Data were collected from 150 COVID‐19 patients with a positive polymerase chain reaction test for SARS‐CoV‐2 between 11 March 2020 and 15 May 2020 in Rize, Turkey. Patients were interviewed by phone calls 2 months after their recovery. After 9 months, a follow‐up was performed for those who quit smoking. RESULTS: Of the participants, 19 (12.7%) were current smokers before the COVID‐19 diagnosis, and 15 (78.9%) of them stated that they quit smoking after their diagnosis. After nine months of follow‐up, 11 of those 15 participants (57.8%) sustained abstinence. CONCLUSION: Smoking cessation rates are high in people with COVID‐19. Besides, the frequency of sustaining abstinence in the long term was also high in these individuals. The COVID‐19 pandemic should be viewed as an open opportunity to strengthen and prioritize smoking cessation activities.