Determinants of smoking cessation attempts among HIV-infected patients results from a hospital-based prospective cohort

Abstract

Background: Non-acquired immune-deficiency syndrome (AIDS) defining malignancies (especially lung cancer) and bacterial infections as well as cardiovascular diseases now account for almost one third of deaths and morbid events in treated patients infected by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Tobacco smoking is a major modifiable risk factor of these emergent conditions and almost half of these patients are regular smokers in resource-rich countries.

Objective: To estimate the effect of HIV infection characteristics on smoking cessation attempts among HIV-infected smokers.

Methods: All smokers of the ANRS CO3 Aquitaine Cohort with at least two visits between 2000 and 2005 were included in this analysis. The probability of smoking cessation attempts was estimated using survival analyses for recurrent events (frailty model). Covariates were CD4 cell count, gender, age, HIV transmission categories, duration since HIV-diagnosis, AIDS stage, antiretroviral therapy, and cardiovascular history.

Results: Among 2223 smokers, 743 attempted to quit smoking at least once. The incidence of smoking cessation attempt was lower among patients infected through injection drug use (IDU) and was higher among patients aged 50 or older (HR=1.4), those with a known duration of HIV infection >15 years (HR=1.5), and those who had already tried to quit smoking once (HR=4.2) or more (HR=5.8).

Discussion: Traditional characteristics associated with smoking cessation attempts are the most important to explain smoking cessation attempts in HIV-infected patients. These results indicate that strategies successfully implemented in other populations should be reinforced to fit the needs of HIV-infected patients.