P2-533 An evaluation of the first gender-specific smoking cessation counselling program for female smokers to quit in Hong Kong: a 3-year follow-up

Background: Physician-implemented interventions for smoking cessation are effective but infrequently used. We evaluated smoking cessation practices among physicians in Argentina.Methods: A self-administered survey of physicians from six clinical systems asked about smoking cessation counselling practices, barriers to tobacco use counselling and perceived quality of training received in smoking cessation practices.Results: Of 254 physicians, 52.3% were women, 11.8% were current smokers and 52% never smoked. Perceived quality of training in tobacco cessation counselling was rated as very good or good by 41.8% and as poor/very poor by 58.2%. Most physicians (90%) reported asking and recording smoking status, 89% advised patients to quit smoking but only 37% asked them to set a quit date and 44% prescribed medications. Multivariate analyses showed that Physicians' perceived quality of their training in smoking cessation methods was associated with greater use of evidence-based cessation interventions. (OR = 6.5; 95% CI = 2.2–19.1); motivating patients to quit (OR: 7.9 CI 3.44–18.5), assisting patients to quit (OR = 9.9; 95% CI = 4.0–24.2) prescribing medications (OR = 9.6; 95% CI = 3.5–26.7), and setting up follow-up (OR = 13.0; 95% CI = 4.4–38.5).Conclusions: Perceived quality of training in smoking cessation was associated with using evidence-based interventions and among physicians from Argentina. Medical training programs should enhance the quality of this curriculum.

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Dental Students as Smoking Cessation Counsellors: Patients’ and Providers’ Perspective

IIUM Medical Journal Malaysia ◽

10.31436/imjm.v17i1.289 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 17 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Nor Azlida Mohd Nor ◽

Marvin Costher Repen ◽

Zakuan Zakaria ◽

Norintan Ab-Murat ◽

Roslan Saub ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Smoking Cessation ◽

Dental Students ◽

Smoking Cessation Counselling ◽

Quit Smoking ◽

Positive Attitudes ◽

Quit Rate ◽

Quitting Smoking ◽

The University

Introduction: This study assesses dental students’ and patients’ perceptions on the role of dental students as smoking cessation counsellors as well as the patient’s quit rate at the University of XX. Materials and methods: Self-administered questionnaires were distributed to all senior dental students (n=154) in XX University and telephone call interviews were conducted on their patients (n=169) who received smoking cessation counselling from September 2010 to June 2013. Results: Response rates for dental students and patients were 68.2% and 67.3% respectively. Most of the dental students in this study were females (72.3%) whereas the majority of patients were males (97.6%). An average of six months follow up indicated that 22.5% of patients had quit smoking, 65.3% reduced the number of cigarettes smoked and 6.5% had relapsed. About a third of patients surveyed (33.1%) believed that smoking cessation counselling was extremely helpful compared to what students perceived (5.7%, p<0.01). A higher percentage of patients (89.9%) rated the smoking cessation counselling performance as “excellent”, as compared to students’ rating (58.1%, p<0.01). The majority of the dental students and patients agreed that students should enquire about patients tobacco usage, information regarding the effects of smoking on oral health should be transmitted to patients and that quit smoking assistance should be offered. Conclusion: Smoking cessation counselling conducted by dental students seemed to be effective in assisting patients to reduce the number of cigarettes smoked and in quitting smoking. To some extent, both patients and students had positive attitudes towards smoking cessation counselling.

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Association of heated tobacco product use with smoking cessation in Chinese cigarette smokers in Hong Kong: a prospective study

Tobacco Control ◽

10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2020-055857 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. tobaccocontrol-2020-055857

Author(s):

Tzu Tsun Luk ◽

Xue Weng ◽

Yongda Socrates Wu ◽

Hiu Laam Chan ◽

Ching Yin Lau ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Smoking Cessation ◽

Hong Kong ◽

Secondary Analysis ◽

Prevalence Ratio ◽

Randomised Clinical Trial ◽

Community Based ◽

Related Factors ◽

Cigarette Smokers ◽

Intentions To Quit

IntroductionHeated tobacco products (HTPs) are increasingly popular worldwide, but whether they aid or undermine cigarette abstinence remains uncertain. We examined the predictors of HTP initiation and the prospective association of HTP use with cigarette abstinence in community-based smokers in Hong Kong.DesignSecondary analysis of a randomised clinical trial aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of brief advice and referral for smoking cessation. The interventions were not related to HTP use.Participants and settings1213 carbon monoxide-verified daily cigarette smokers with intentions to quit or reduce smoking proactively recruited from community sites throughout Hong KongMain exposureCurrent (past 7 day) use of HTP at baseline.Main outcomeSelf-reported 7-day point-prevalence cigarette abstinence at 6 months (exclusive use of HTP permitted).ResultsAt baseline, 201 (16.6%) and 60 (4.9%) were ever and current HTP users, respectively. During the 6-month follow-up period, 110 of 1012 (10.9%) never users at baseline initiated HTPs. Younger age and higher education significantly predicted initiation. After adjusting for sociodemographic, smoking-related and quitting-related factors, current HTP use at baseline was not associated with cigarette abstinence at 6 months (adjusted prevalence ratio (aPR) 1.08, 95% CI 0.63 to 1.85). The results were similar in persistent users from baseline to 1-month/3-month follow-up (vs non-users; aPR 1.14, 95% CI 0.57 to 2.29). Use of smoking cessation service between baseline and 3-month follow-up significantly predicted cigarette abstinence (aPR 1.70, 95% CI 1.26 to 2.30).ConclusionHTP use was not associated with cigarette abstinence at 6 months in a community-based cohort of smokers with intentions to quit or reduce smoking.Trial registration detailsClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03565796.

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A block randomized controlled trial of a brief smoking cessation counselling and advice through short message service on participants who joined the Quit to Win Contest in Hong Kong

Health Education Research ◽

10.1093/her/cyv023 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 30 (4) ◽

pp. 609-621 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

Sophia S. C. Chan ◽

David C. N. Wong ◽

Yee Tak Derek Cheung ◽

Doris Y. P. Leung ◽

Lisa Lau ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Randomized Controlled Trial ◽

Smoking Cessation ◽

Hong Kong ◽

Short Message Service ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Short Message ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Smoking Cessation Counselling ◽

Message Service

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Efficacy of electronic cigarettes for tobacco smoking cessation: An adapted systematic review

European Journal of Public Health ◽

10.1093/eurpub/ckaa166.1167 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽

Author(s):

T O'Dowd

Keyword(s):

Smoking Cessation ◽

Cohort Studies ◽

Randomised Controlled Trials ◽

Electronic Cigarettes ◽

Controlled Trials ◽

Significant Heterogeneity ◽

Smoking Reduction ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Randomised Controlled

Abstract Background Worldwide smoking remains the leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality. Electronic cigarettes (ECs) are increasingly used by tobacco smokers as an aid to smoking cessation; however, their efficacy remains uncertain. Methods Electronic databases, clinical trial registries and grey literature sources were searched. The aim was to examine randomised controlled trials or prospective cohort studies, published since the 2016 Cochrane review on this topic, that assessed the efficacy of ECs in achieving smoking cessation among current smokers. Results Two RCTs and five cohort studies, including a total of 16,460 participants, were eligible for inclusion. One RCT found sustained 1-year abstinence of 18.0% in the EC group versus 9.9% in the nicotine replacement therapy group (RR: 1.83; 95% CI 1.30 to 2.58; P < 0.001). The second RCT did not find a statistically significant difference in abstinence rates between EC users and non-users (RR 0.71). Of the five included cohort studies, four reported statistically significant RRs. Two found a positive association (RRs of 1.45 and 1.84) between EC use and smoking cessation but two studies showed EC use was associated with reduced smoking cessation (RRs of 0.25 and 0.35). Due to significant heterogeneity between the studies the data were deemed unsuitable for pooling into a meta-analysis. All trials assessing smoking reduction reported higher rates of reduction among EC users. No serious adverse events were reported with EC use. Follow-up periods of included trials ranged from one to four years, with an average of 1.6 years. Conclusions There is limited, low-quality evidence that ECs are an effective intervention for smoking cessation and smoking reduction. The overall quality of evidence is low as it is based on a small number of studies with inconsistent and imprecise results. Due to the short follow-up periods of the included trials, the long-term safety of ECs is unclear from this review. Key messages Limited evidence that electronic cigarettes are an effective smoking cessation intervention. Further well-designed randomised controlled trials are required to investigate the efficacy of ECs for smoking cessation.

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Effects of active referral combined with a small financial incentive on smoking cessation: study protocol for a cluster randomised controlled trial

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2020-038351 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (10) ◽

pp. e038351

Author(s):

Xue Weng ◽

Man Ping Wang ◽

Ho Cheung William Li ◽

Yee Tak Derek Cheung ◽

Ching Yin Lau ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Smoking Cessation ◽

Hong Kong ◽

Randomised Controlled Trial ◽

Financial Incentive ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Reduction Rate ◽

Cluster Randomised Controlled Trial ◽

Cluster Randomised ◽

Smoking Cessation Services ◽

Randomised Controlled

IntroductionEvidence-based smoking cessation treatments are effective but underutilised, accentuating the need for novel approaches to increase use. This trial investigates the effects of active referral combined with a financial incentive to use smoking cessation services on smoking abstinence among community smokers.Methods and analysisThis ongoing study is a two-arm, assessor-blinded, pragmatic, cluster randomised controlled trial with follow‐ups at 1, 2, 3 and 6 months after randomisation. We aim to enrol 1134 daily smokers from 70 community sites (clusters) in Hong Kong. All participants receive Ask, Warn, Advise, Refer, Do-it-again (AWARD) guided advice and a self-help booklet at baseline. Additionally, participants in the intervention group receive an offer of referral to smoking cessation services at baseline and a small financial incentive (HK$300≈US$38) contingent on using any of such services within 3 months. The primary outcomes are bioverified abstinence (exhaled carbon monoxide <4 ppm and salivary cotinine <10 ng/mL) at 3 and 6 months. Secondary outcomes include self-reported 7-day point prevalence of abstinence, smoking reduction rate, quit attempts and the use of smoking cessation services at 3 and 6 months. Intention-to-treat approach and regression models will be used in primary analyses.Ethics and disseminationThis protocol has been approved by the Institutional Review Board of the University of Hong Kong/Hospital Authority Hong Kong West Cluster (IRB reference number: UW 18-318). The results of this trial will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journals, and the key findings will be presented at national and international conferences.Trial registration numberClinicalTrials.gov Registry NCT03565796.

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The follow-up study of swine and Hong Kong influenza virus infection among Japanese hogs.

The Tohoku Journal of Experimental Medicine ◽

10.1620/tjem.136.353 ◽

1982 ◽

Vol 136 (4) ◽

pp. 353-358 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

JIRO ARIKAWA ◽

NOBUHISA YAMANE ◽

KIYOSHI TOTSUKAWA ◽

NAKAO ISHIDA

Keyword(s):

Influenza Virus ◽

Hong Kong ◽

Virus Infection ◽

Influenza Virus Infection ◽

Follow Up Study

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Assessing the efficacy and impact of a personalised smoking cessation intervention among type 2 diabetic smokers: study protocol for an open-label randomised controlled trial (DISCGO-RCT)

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2020-040117 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (11) ◽

pp. e040117

Author(s):

Carole Clair ◽

Aurélie Augsburger ◽

Priska Birrer ◽

Isabella Locatelli ◽

Joelle Schwarz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Type 2 Diabetes ◽

Smoking Cessation ◽

Smoking Cessation Intervention ◽

Randomised Control Trial ◽

Primary Study ◽

Smoking Abstinence ◽

Open Label ◽

Cessation Intervention

IntroductionFew studies have assessed the efficacy of smoking cessation interventions in individuals with type 2 diabetes, but interventions adapted to the specific needs of this population are warranted. The aim of this study is to assess the efficacy of a smoking cessation intervention in a population of smokers with type 2 diabetes and to measure the metabolic impact of smoking cessation.Methods and analysisThe study is an open-label, randomised control trial. Participants recruited from a sanitary region of Switzerland will be randomly allocated to either the intervention or the control arm. The intervention group will have four individual counselling sessions over 12 weeks. Trained research nurses will conduct the behavioural intervention, using motivational interviews and addressing diabetes and gender specificities. The control group will have one short counselling session at baseline and will be given written information on smoking cessation. Both groups will have a follow-up visit at 26 and 52 weeks. Demographic and medical data will be collected at baseline and follow-up, along with blood and urine samples. The primary study outcome is continuous smoking abstinence validated by expired-air carbon monoxide from week 12 to week 52. Secondary study outcomes are continuous and 7-day point prevalence smoking abstinence at 12 and 26 weeks; change in motivation to quit and cigarette consumption; and change in glycosylated haemoglobin levels, body weight, waist circumference and renal function after smoking cessation. In a subsample of 80 participants, change in stool microbiota from baseline will be measured at 3, 8 and 26 weeks after smoking cessation.Ethics and disseminationEthical approval has been obtained by the competent ethics committee (Commission cantonale d’éthique de la recherche sur l’être humain, CER-VD 2017–00812). The results of the study will be disseminated through publications in peer-reviewed journals and conference presentations.Trial registration numbersClinicalTrials.gov NCT03426423 and SNCTP000002762; Pre-results.

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Effectiveness of e-cigarettes in smoking cessation: a systematic review and meta-analysis

European Journal of Public Health ◽

10.1093/eurpub/ckaa166.1226 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽

Author(s):

M Oberndorfer ◽

I Grabovac ◽

S Haider ◽

T E Dorner

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Smoking Cessation ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

Current Evidence ◽

Promising Alternative ◽

Quality Of Evidence ◽

Different Populations ◽

Meta Analyses

Abstract Background Reports of the effectiveness of e-cigarettes (ECs) for smoking cessation vary across different studies making implementation recommendations hard to attain. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to synthesise the current evidence regarding the effectiveness of ECs for smoking cessation. Methods PubMed, PsycInfo and Embase databases were searched for randomized controlled trials comparing nicotine ECs with non-nicotine ECs or with established smoking cessation interventions (nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and or counselling) published between 01/01/2014 and 01/05/2019. Data from eligible studies were extracted and used for random-effects meta-analyses. Results Our literature review yielded 13190 publications with 10 studies being identified as eligible for systematic review, covering 8362 participants, and 8 for meta-analyses (n = 30 - 6006). Using the last follow-up of eligible studies, the proportion of smokers achieving abstinence was 1.67 [95CI:0.99 - 2.81] times higher in nicotine EC users compared to non-nicotine EC users. The proportion of abstinent smokers was 1.69 [95CI:1.25 - 2.27] times higher in EC users compared to participants receiving NRT. EC users showed a 2.70 [95CI:1.15 - 6.30] times higher proportion of abstinent smokers in comparison to participants solely receiving counselling. Conclusions Our analysis showed modest effects of nicotine-ECs compared to non-nicotine ECs. When compared to NRT or counselling, results suggest that nicotine EC may be more effective for smoking cessation. As ECs also help maintaining routinized behaviour and social aspects of smoking, we hypothesise that this may explain their advantage as a tool for smoking cessation. However, given the small number of included studies, different populations, heterogeneous designs, and the overall moderate to low quality of evidence, it is not possible to offer clear recommendations. More comparable data is needed to strengthen confidence in the quality of evidence. Key messages The number of previous studies assessing the effectiveness of ECs for smoking cessation is limited. Further, comparability of these studies is restricted, weakening the quality of evidence. Although current evidence on the effectiveness of ECs for smoking cessation is inconclusive, our meta-analyses suggest that ECs could be a promising alternative tool in attempts to achieve abstinence.

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