Background: Nicotine addiction is a public health problem. Our hypothesis was that the degree of nicotine dependence is positively correlated with the perceived intensity of acute pain.
Materials and methods: A single-center prospective comparative observational study was conducted from 2019 to 2021. Patients included presented distal phalanx extra-articular trauma of less than 24hours' progression. We compared a group of smokers with a group of non-smokers. A Digital Pain Scale (DPS) was assessed at time of trauma, at first consultation, and once a day until the fifth day post-trauma. A Fagerström test was performed. The primary endpoints were the correlation between dependence and DPS and the correlation between the amount of tobacco consumed and DPS. The secondary endpoints were analgesic consumption according to Fagerström, DPS and tobacco consumption.
Results: Sixty-seven patients were included: 26 smokers, 41 non-smokers. No significant correlation was found between dependence level or amount of tobacco used and DPS. Consumption of level II analgesics was significantly 2-fold higher in the smoking group on the second, third and fifth day: respectively, 2.15 tablets versus 1.22 (p=0.02), 1.27 versus 0.49 (p=0.01), and 0.69 versus 0.20 (p=0.04).
Conclusion: Patients who smoke are exposed to more frequent and more intense pain and consume more palliative painkillers.
Level of evidence: IIB; exposed vs. non-exposed cohort.
Keywords: Acute pain; Addiction; Smoking.
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