Predictors of retention in a multicomponent treatment for smokers

Abstract

Background: There is a lack of knowledge about factors that promote or hinder retention of smokers in treatment. Objective: The aim of this study was the identification of variables that predict retention of smokers who received a multicomponent treatment against smoking. Method: Participants (n = 79) simultaneously received pharmacological and psychological treatment, including an intervention phase prior to the date of smoking cessation. They were evaluated periodically in their abstinence, depressive and anxious symptoms, and were randomly assigned to three treatment conditions (nicotine patch, bupropion or nicotine patch + bupropion). Eighteen variables were grouped into four categories (demographic, consumption pattern, mood and treatment). Data were analyzed using student's t test and X 2 , for inclusion into a multivariate logistic regression model. Results: Results indicate that age of onset of regular tobacco consumption, secondary education and bupropion pharmacological treatment are significant in relation to the retention of smokers to smoking treatment. Discussion: The reported "age of onset" correlates with treatment retention (OR = 1.545, 95 % CI = 1.175-2.032). This variable has not previously been reported in the literature, and taking it into account in the design of prevention and treatment for smoking could increase their success.

Predictors of recruitment and retention in randomized controlled trials of behavioural smoking cessation interventions: a systematic review and meta‐regression analysis

“…The risk of bias was assessed regarding the risk of selection bias, detection bias, attrition bias, reporting bias and other bias. Each of the following listed domains was assessed as adequate, unclear or inadequate: sequence generation, allocation concealment, [10,13,26,27] Sex Proportion of female participants Higher proportion of female increases recruitment [20] and reduces retention [26,29] Socio-economic status (SES) Studies were labelled as low SES when the majority of the participants were described as having low education levels, low income, being unemployed, homeless, receiving government benefits, in prison, or sample otherwise labelled as 'low SES' Low SES reduces recruitment [11] and reduces retention [28,38] Nicotine dependency Level of nicotine dependence as assessed on the Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence [46] Missing values were imputed based on cigarettes per day scores where available Higher nicotine dependency reduces recruitment [11] and retention [6] Motivation to quit Motivation is assumed present when either one of the following two variables is yes:…”

“…Based on a systematic search of the literature and input from experts we a priori-identified factors (i.e. predictors) that may influence the recruitment process (eligibility and recruitment rates) [4,9,[19][20][21][22] and retention [10,11,14,16,[22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29] in smoking cessation RCTs and grouped the identified predictors into four categories: participant characteristics (e.g. age and gender), recruitment strategies (e.g.…”