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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2013 Mar;15(3):718-28.
doi: 10.1093/ntr/nts186. Epub 2012 Sep 19.

Enhancing tobacco quitline effectiveness: identifying a superior pharmacotherapy adjuvant

Stevens S Smith  1 , Paula A Keller, Kate H Kobinsky, Timothy B Baker, David L Fraser, Terry Bush, Brooke Magnusson, Susan M Zbikowski, Timothy A McAfee, Michael C Fiore
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Enhancing tobacco quitline effectiveness: identifying a superior pharmacotherapy adjuvant

Stevens S Smith et al. Nicotine Tob Res. 2013 Mar.

Abstract

Introduction: Telephone tobacco quitlines are effective and are widely used, with more than 500,000 U.S. callers in 2010. This study investigated the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of 3 different quitline enhancements: combination nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), longer duration of NRT, and counseling to increase NRT adherence.

Methods: In this study, 987 quitline callers were randomized to a combination of quitline treatments in a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial design: NRT duration (2 vs. 6 weeks), NRT type (nicotine patch only vs. patch plus nicotine gum), and standard 4-call counseling (SC) versus SC plus medication adherence counseling (MAC). The primary outcome was 7-day point-prevalence abstinence (PPA) at 6 months postquit in intention-to-treat (ITT) analyses.

Results: Combination NRT for 6 weeks yielded the highest 6-month PPA rate (51.6%) compared with 2 weeks of nicotine patch (38.4%), odds ratios [OR] = 1.71 (95% confidence interval [CI]:1.20-2.45). A similar result was found for 2 weeks of combination NRT (48.2%), OR = 1.49 (95% CI: 1.04-2.14) but not for 6 weeks of nicotine patch alone (46.2%), OR = 1.38 (95% CI: 0.96-1.97). The MAC intervention effect was nonsignificant. Cost analyses showed that the 2-week combination NRT group had the lowest cost per quit ($442 vs. $464 for 2-week patch only, $505 for 6-week patch only, and $675 for 6-week combination NRT).

Conclusions: Combination NRT for 2 or 6 weeks increased 6-month abstinence rates by 10% and 13%, respectively, over rates produced by 2 weeks of nicotine patch when offered with quitline counseling. A 10% improvement would potentially yield an additional 50,000 quitters annually, assuming 500,000 callers to U.S. quitlines per year.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01087905.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
CONSORT diagram.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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