Cigarette smoking and quit attempts among injection drug users in Tijuana, Mexico.

INTRODUCTION: Injection drug use and cigarette smoking are major global health concerns. Limited data exist regarding cigarette smoking behavior and quit attempts among injection drug users (IDUs) in low- and middle-income countries to inform the development of cigarette smoking interventions. We conducted a cross-sectional study to describe cigarette smoking behavior and quit attempts among IDUs in Tijuana, Mexico. METHODS: IDUs were recruited through community outreach and administered in-person interviews. Multivariable Poisson regression models were constructed to determine prevalence ratios (PRs) for quit attempts. RESULTS: Of the 670 participants interviewed, 601 (89.7%) were current smokers. Of these, median number of cigarettes smoked daily was 10; 190 (31.6%) contemplated quitting smoking in the next 6 months; 132 (22.0%) had previously quit for ≥1 year; and 124 (20.6%) had made a recent quit attempt (lasting ≥1 day during the previous 6 months). In multivariable analysis, recent quit attempts were positively associated with average monthly income (≥3,500 pesos [US$280] vs. <1,500 pesos [US$120]; PR = 2.30; 95% CI = 1.57-3.36), smoking marijuana (PR = 1.38; 95% CI = 1.01-2.90), and smoking heroin (PR = 1.85; 95% CI = 1.23-2.78), and they were negatively associated with number of cigarettes smoked daily (PR = 0.96; 95% CI = 0.94-0.98). CONCLUSIONS: One out of 5 IDUs attempted to quit cigarette smoking during the previous 6 months. Additional research is needed to improve the understanding of the association between drug use patterns and cigarette smoking quit attempts, including the higher rate of quit attempts observed among IDUs who smoke marijuana or heroin compared with IDUs who do not smoke these substances.

Evolution of tobacco labeling and packaging: international legal considerations and health governance.

Numerous national governments have recently adopted packaging and labeling legislation to curb global tobacco uptake. This coincides with the World Health Organization's 2011 World No Tobacco Day, which recognized the extraordinary progress of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). The tobacco industry has presented legal challenges to countries, including Australia, Uruguay, and the United States, for enacting legislation meeting or exceeding FCTC obligations. We argue that national governments attempting to meet the obligations set forth in public health treaties such as the FCTC should be afforded flexibilities and protection in developing tobacco control laws and regulations, because these measures are necessary to protect public health and should be explicitly recognized in international trade and legal agreements.

Feasibility study of a smoking cessation intervention in Directly Observed Therapy Short-Course tuberculosis treatment clinics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

A pilot feasibility study was conducted to determine whether Directly Observed Therapy Short-Course (DOTS) workers could be trained to deliver smoking cessation counseling and referral interventions, identify potential barriers to a full-scale randomized controlled trial on the effectiveness of integrated smoking cessation in DOTS, and determine whether tuberculosis (TB) patients who smoke would agree to participate in such a program. DOTS providers in two Rio de Janeiro primary health clinics received 1-day training in cessation counseling. They completed pre- and post-training surveys and participated in post-program focus groups. Patients were surveyed 3 months after program completion, and semiquantitative urine assays for cotinine were used to confirm cessation. Providers' mean self-efficacy scores for cessation counseling improved significantly (advise to quit, assess readiness, assist with quitting, and arrange follow-up) from scores (on a scale of 1-5) of 2-3 pre-training to 3-4 post-training (P < 0.05), with only ability to change motivation not significant. Providers' knowledge about cessation (withdrawal, nicotine replacement therapy, precontemplation) was low before training and did not improve after training (P > 0.1 for all comparisons). Implementation of a smoking cessation intervention by DOTS providers in TB clinics in Brazil is feasible. Randomized controlled trials to test intervention effectiveness in reducing TB-related morbidity must include cross-training for tobacco control and TB providers. Smoking cessation in DOTS programs may be important in reducing the global burden of TB, improving the health of TB patients, and reducing TB transmission in households.

Mortalidad atribuible al tabaquismo, años de vida potencial perdidos y costos directos para la atención de salud en Puerto Rico, 1983 / Smoking-attributable mortality, years of potential life lost, and direct health care costs for Puerto Rico, 1983

Se describen los efectos del tabaquismo en la salud observados en Puerto Rico en 1983. Mediante un programa para microcomputador que calcula la morbilidad atribuible al hábito de fumar, se estimó que el número de defunciones atribuibles al tabaquismo fue 2 468. Esta cifra equivale a 11,5 por ciento del total de defunciones de la isla en 1983 y representa aproximadamente 19 445 años de vida potencial perdidos. El hábito de fumar originó en Puerto Rico gastos directos por atención de salud de 55,9 millones de dólares estadounidenses, cantidad equivalente a 10 por ciento del total de gastos anuales en salud en la isla. Las estimaciones de este tipo demuestran los notables efectos del tabaquismo en la morbilidad y pueden ayudar a los responsables de las políticas de salud a planificar actividades de prevención e intervención, tanto en Puerto Rico como en cualquier otro país de América Latina

Disponible en inglés en Bull. Pan Am. Health Organ 25(1) 1991

Smoking-attributable mortality, years of potential life lost, and direct health care costs for Puerto Rico, 1983

The authors report the impact of smoking upon health in Puerto Rico for the year 1983. Using a microcomputer spread-sheet program that calculates smoking-attributable disease impact, they estimated that 2,468 deaths were attributable to smoking. This represented 11.5 percent of all deaths on the island in 1983 and resulted in approximately 19,445 years of potential life lost (YPLL). It appears that cigarette smoking caused US$55.9 million in direct health care expenditures for Puerto Rico in 1983, an amount equal to 10 percent of the island's yearly expenditures on health. Calculations such as these demonstrate the enormous disease impact of smoking and may assist policy-makers in planning prevention and intervention activities, both in Puerto Rico and elsewhere in Latin America