Prioritizing common terminology and measures to advance research on oral nicotine product use

Introduction:
This text is a commentary published in the Nicotine and Tobacco Research journal that discusses the importance of standardizing the terminology and measures used to study oral nicotine product (ONP) use. The authors argue that the rapidly evolving market for ONPs demands urgency in creating a consistent measurement framework and that essential work on measurement reliability and validity is needed to support the use of optimal measures.

Key Points:

* The text provides recommended measures for assessing ONP use, including ever use, current use, quantity, flavors, nicotine strength, reasons, and occasions for use.
* The authors emphasize the importance of using clear product descriptions, popular brand names, and images to increase understanding of ONPs and minimize misclassification with NRT and/or SLT/snus.
* The text highlights the need for high-quality, independent data on nicotine/tobacco use patterns and the urgent need to measure the use of this new product category, evaluate and establish the validity of ONP measures, and inform future research studies.
* The authors recommend the development and inclusion of standardized questions to measure ONP use, as well as knowledge, attitudes, motivation to use, and risk perceptions, in population-based surveys.
* The text notes that retailer sales data and market expenditure data can reveal important product characteristics for inclusion in survey measures and inform measure design.
* The authors acknowledge the need for validated and standardized measures of dependence and subjective, pharmacokinetic, and pharmacodynamic effects in clinical settings.
* The text mentions the importance of new methods to measure the amount of nicotine delivered by ONPs and health effects more germane to these products in clinical trials.

Main Message:
The main message of this text is the urgent need for accurate and consistent measurement of ONP use to characterize the population impact of ONPs. Misclassification of ONPs to NRT and/or SLT/snus may bias prevalence estimates of product use and impact understanding of factors and conditions related to use. The authors emphasize the importance of high-quality, independent data on nicotine/tobacco use patterns and the urgent need to evaluate and establish the validity of ONP measures to inform future research studies. Development and inclusion of standardized questions to measure ONP use, as well as knowledge, attitudes, motivation to use, and risk perceptions, are essential to understanding ONP use and their potential public health impact.

Hrywna, M., Ozga, J. E., Stanton, C. A., Chaffee, B. W., Delnevo, C. D., Fucito, L. M., Jabba, S. V., Morean, M. E., & Tackett, A. P. (2023). Prioritizing common terminology and measures to advance research on oral nicotine product use. Nicotine & Tobacco Research: Official Journal of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco, ntad206. https://doi.org/10.1093/ntr/ntad206