Effect of digital health, biomarker feedback and nurse or midwife-led counselling interventions to assist pregnant smokers quit: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

ObjectiveTo assess the effect of digital health (DH), biomarker feedback (BF) and nurse or midwife-led counselling (NoMC) interventions on abstinence in pregnant smokers during pregnancy and postpartum.SettingsAny healthcare setting servicing pregnant women, including any country globally.ParticipantsPregnant women of any social, ethnic or geographical background who smoke.MethodsWe searched Embase, Medline, Web Of Science, Google Scholar, PsychINFO, CINAHL and PubMed between 2007 and November 2021. We included published original intervention studies in English with comparators (usual care or placebo). Two independent assessors screened and abstracted data. We performed a random-effects meta-analysis, assessed risk of bias with the Cochrane Tool and used Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation to assess the quality of evidence.ResultsWe identified 57 studies and included 54 in the meta-analysis. Sixteen studies assessed DH (n=3961), 6 BF (n=1643), 32 NoMC (n=60 251), 1 assessed NoMC with BF (n=1120) and 2 NoMC with DH interventions (n=2107). DH interventions had moderate certainty evidence to achieve continuous abstinence (CA) at late pregnancy (4 studies; 2049 women; RR=1.98, 95% CI 1.08 to 3.64, p=0.03) and low certainty evidence to achieve point prevalence abstinence (PPA) postpartum (5 studies; 2238 women; RR=1.46, 95% CI 1.05 to 2.02, p=0.02). NoMC interventions had moderate certainty evidence to achieve PPA in late pregnancy (15 studies; 16 234 women; RR=1.54, 95% CI 1.16 to 2.06, p<0.01) and low certainty evidence to achieve PPA postpartum (13 studies; 5466 women; RR=1.79, 95% CI 1.14 to 2.83, p=0.01). Both DH and BF interventions did not achieve PPA at late pregnancy, nor NoMC interventions achieve CA postpartum. The certainty was reduced due to risk of bias, heterogeneity, inconsistency and/or imprecision.ConclusionNoMC interventions can assist pregnant smokers achieve PPA and DH interventions achieve CA in late pregnancy. These interventions may achieve other outcomes.

Digital interventions in smoking cessation: a brief overview of systematic reviews and meta-analyses

“…Interestingly, digital health interventions for pregnant smokers have also been studied concerning continuous abstinence in late pregnancy, alongside counselling from nurses or midwives. The authors asserted that these interventions can attain continuous abstinence in late pregnancy, presenting this approach as a promising and effective tool for supporting smoking cessation interventions in pregnant women [22]. Another study assessed the eHealth intervention on different substance use among pregnant women [23].…”