Source: DGNews  |  Posted 2 years ago

By Walter Alexander

DUBLIN, Ireland -- April 30, 2009 -- Final results from the New England Smoking Cessation/Reduction in Pregnancy Trial (SCRIPT) show that telephone-based smoking cessation interventions aimed at high-risk, low-income, pregnant women can be effective.

The results were presented in a poster presentation here at the 2009 Joint Conference of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT) and SRNT-Europe on April 28.

More than 17% of pregnant women continue to smoke, despite the well-documented adverse effects of smoking during pregnancy, said lead author Richard Windsor, PhD, George Washington University, Washington, DC.

Smoking rates are higher among underserved pregnant women on Medicaid who are less likely to receive ongoing prenatal care and even less likely to be exposed to repeated smoking cessation messages.

SCRIPT included 1,065 pregnant women smokers treated in 22 New England clinics randomised to 1 of 3 protocols. All received a Quick Kit (QK), comprised of A Pregnant Woman's Guide to Quit Smoking and a video, Commit to Quit. The first group received QK only; the second protocol added enrolment in a lottery called Quit & Win (Q&W), which awards a prize worth $100; and the third also added 3 motivational interview (MI) phone calls.

Self-reported smoking status was assessed at baseline, 32 weeks' gestation, and 6 months post partum. Smoking status was biochemically confirmed by testing urine samples for cotinine on a subsample (21%) of women.

The self-reported quit rates were adjusted for a 17% deception rate based on cotinine findings, and nonresponders were counted as continuing smokers. Adjusted quit rates at 32 weeks' gestation were 17.2% for QK, 12.5% for QK + Q&W, and 18.7% for QK + Q&W + MI (P = .07 vs QK + Q&W).

"This shows that while the monetary incentive was ineffective, reinforcing the core methods of brief counseling with tailored interventions can produce an additional increment of cessation," said Dr. Windsor.

"This type of program, will significantly increase cessation rates, and very likely increase reduction rates in pregnant women."

Funding for this study was provided by the National Institutes of Health, and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.

[Presentation title: Final Results From the New England SCRIPT (Smoking Cessation/Reduction in Pregnancy Trial). Abstract P02-82]