Use of Routine Clinical Preventive Services Among Daily Smokers, Non-daily Smokers, Former Smokers, and Never-smokers

Studies examining differences in clinical preventive services between smokers and nonsmokers have yielded mixed results. While some have noted reduced rates of certain preventive services among smokers relative to nonsmokers, others have reported no differences based on smoking status. These inconsistencies may be due, at least in part, to the way in which smoking status was measured. The present investigation examined variability in utilization of six common preventive services including immunization (influenza and pneumococcal) and cancer screening (breast, cervical, colorectal, and prostate) using more specific categories of smoking history and status.