Smoking reduction among homeless smokers in a randomized controlled trial targeting cessation.

INTRODUCTION: Homeless populations have high rates of smoking and unique barriers to quitting. General cessation strategies have been unsuccessful in this population. Smoking reduction may be a good intermediate goal. We conducted a secondary analysis to identify predictors of smoking reduction in a cohort of homeless smokers enrolled in a 26-week randomized clinical trial (RCT) targeting smoking cessation. METHODS: Data are from an RCT comparing motivational interviewing counseling plus nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) to brief advice to quit (standard care) plus NRT among homeless smokers. Using bivariate analyses and multinomial logistic regression, we compared demographics, health and psychosocial variables, tobacco use, substance use, and NRT adherence among those who reported: quitting; reducing smoking by 50-99%; and not reducing smoking by 50%. RESULTS: Of 324 participants who completed 26-week follow-up, 18.8% and 63.9% self-reported quitting and reducing, respectively. Compared to those who did not reduce smoking, participants reporting reducing indicated higher baseline cigarette use (OR=1.08; CI:1.04-1.12) and menthol use (OR=2.24; CI:1.05-4.77). Compared to participants who reduced, participants reporting quitting were more likely to be male (OR=1.998; CI:1.00-3.98), experience more housing instability (OR=1.97; CI:1.08-3.59), indicate higher importance of quitting (OR=1.27; CI:1.041.55), have higher NRT adherence (OR=1.75; CI:1.00-3.06), and lower odds of reported illicit drug use (OR=0.48; CI:0.24-0.95). CONCLUSIONS: Over half of participants reduced smoking by at least 50%, indicating reduction is feasible among homeless smokers. Further research is required to understand the impact of reduction on future cessation attempts in homeless smokers. This study shows that reduction is achievable and may be a valid intermediate goal.

A Bayesian hierarchical model for individual participant data meta-analysis of demand curves.

Individual participant data meta-analysis is a frequently used method to combine and contrast data from multiple independent studies. Bayesian hierarchical models are increasingly used to appropriately take into account potential heterogeneity between studies. In this paper, we propose a Bayesian hierarchical model for individual participant data generated from the Cigarette Purchase Task (CPT). Data from the CPT details how demand for cigarettes varies as a function of price, which is usually described as an exponential demand curve. As opposed to the conventional random-effects meta-analysis methods, Bayesian hierarchical models are able to estimate both the study-specific and population-level parameters simultaneously without relying on the normality assumptions. We applied the proposed model to a meta-analysis with baseline CPT data from six studies and compared the results from the proposed model and a two-step conventional random-effects meta-analysis approach. We conducted extensive simulation studies to investigate the performance of the proposed approach and discussed the benefits of using the Bayesian hierarchical model for individual participant data meta-analysis of demand curves.

A cross-sectional study of the relationship of proximal smoking environments and cessation history, plans, and self-efficacy among low-income smokers.

INTRODUCTION: Proximal environments could facilitate smoking cessation among low-income smokers by making cessation appealing to strive for and tenable. AIMS: We sought to examine how home smoking rules and proximal environmental factors such as other household members' and peers' smoking behaviors and attitudes related to low-income smokers' past quit attempts, readiness, and self-efficacy to quit. METHODS: This analysis used data from Offering Proactive Treatment Intervention (OPT-IN) (randomized control trial of proactive tobacco cessation outreach) baseline survey, which was completed by 2,406 participants in 2011/12. We tested the associations between predictors (home smoking rules and proximal environmental factors) and outcomes (past-year quit attempts, readiness to quit, and quitting self-efficacy). RESULTS: Smokers who lived in homes with more restrictive household smoking rules, and/or reported having 'important others' who would be supportive of their quitting, were more likely to report having made a quit attempt in the past year, had greater readiness to quit, and greater self-efficacy related to quitting. CONCLUSIONS: Adjustments to proximal environments, including strengthening household smoking rules, might encourage cessation even if other household members are smokers.

Analysis of self-report and biochemically verified tobacco abstinence outcomes with missing data: a sensitivity analysis using two-stage imputation.

BACKGROUND: Missing data are common in tobacco studies. It is well known that from the observed data alone, it is impossible to distinguish between missing mechanisms such as missing at random (MAR) and missing not at random (MNAR). In this paper, we propose a sensitivity analysis method to accommodate different missing mechanisms in cessation outcomes determined by self-report and urine validation results. METHODS: We propose a two-stage imputation procedure, allowing survey and urine data to be missing under different mechanisms. The motivating data were from a tobacco cessation trial examining the effects of the extended vs. standard Quit and Win contests and counseling vs. no counseling under a 2-by-2 factorial design. The primary outcome was 6-month biochemically verified tobacco abstinence. RESULTS: Our proposed method covers a wide spectrum of missing scenarios, including the widely adopted "missing = smoking" imputation by assuming a perfect smoking-missing correlation (an extreme case of MNAR), the MAR case by assuming a zero smoking-missing correlation, and many more in between. The analysis of the data example shows that the estimated effects of the studied interventions are sensitive to the different missing assumptions on the survey and urine data. CONCLUSIONS: Sensitivity analysis has played a crucial role in assessing the robustness of the findings in clinical trials with missing data. The proposed method provides an effective tool for analyzing missing data introduced at two different stages of outcome assessment, the self-report and validation time. Our methods are applicable to trials studying biochemically verified abstinence from alcohol and other substances.

Cost-effectiveness of enhancing a Quit-and-Win smoking cessation program for college students.

OBJECTIVES: We conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis and model-based cost-utility and cost-benefit analysis of increased dosage (3 vs. 1 consecutive contests) and enhanced content (supplemental smoking-cessation counseling) of the Quit-and-Win contest using data from a randomized control trial enrolling college students in the US. METHODS: For the cost-utility and cost-benefit analyses, we used a microsimulation model of the life course of current and former smokers to translate the distribution of the duration of continuous abstinence among each treatment arm's participants observed at the end of the trial (N = 1217) into expected quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) and costs and an incremental net monetary benefit (INMB). Missing observations in the trial were classified as smoking. For our reference case, we took a societal perspective and used a 3% discount rate for costs and benefits. A probabilistic sensitivity analysis (PSA) was performed to account for model and trial-estimated parameter uncertainty. We also conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis (cost per additional intermediate cessation) using direct costs of the intervention and two trial-based estimates of intermediate cessation: (a) biochemically verified (BV) 6-month continuous abstinence and (b) BV 30-day point prevalence abstinence at 6 months. RESULTS: Multiple contests resulted in a significantly higher BV 6-month continuous abstinence rate (RD 0.04), at a cost of $1275 per additional quit, and increased the duration of continuous abstinence among quitters. In the long run, multiple contests lead to an average gain of 0.03 QALYs and were cost saving. Incorporating parameter uncertainty into the analyses, the expected INMB was greater than $1000 for any realistic willingness to pay (WTP) for a QALY. CONCLUSIONS: Assuming missing values were smoking, multiple contests appear to dominate a single contest from a societal perspective. Funding agencies seeking to promote population health by funding a Quit-and-Win contest in a university setting should strongly consider offering multiple consecutive contests. Further research is needed to evaluate multiple contests compared to no contest.

Practical issues regarding implementing a randomized clinical trial in a homeless population: strategies and lessons learned.

There is a critical need for objective data to guide effective health promotion and care for homeless populations. However, many investigators exclude homeless populations from clinical trials due to practical concerns about conducting research with this population. This report is based on our experience and lessons learned while conducting two large NIH-funded randomized controlled trials targeting smoking cessation among persons who are homeless. The current report also addresses challenges when conducting clinical trials among homeless populations and offers potential solutions. Homeless individuals face several challenges including the need to negotiate daily access to food, clothing, and shelter. Some of the critical issues investigators encounter include recruitment and retention obstacles; cognitive impairment, mental health and substance abuse disorders; transportation and scheduling challenges; issues pertaining to adequate study compensation; the need for safety protocols for study staff; and issues related to protecting the wellbeing of these potentially vulnerable adults. Anticipating realistic conditions in which to conduct studies with participants who are homeless will help investigators to design efficient protocols and may improve the feasibility of conducting clinical trials involving homeless populations and the quality of the data collected by the researchers. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT00786149 . Registered on 5 November 2008; ClinicalTrials.gov, ID: NCT01932996 . Registered on 20 November 2014.

A two-part mixed effects model for cigarette purchase task data.

The Cigarette Purchase Task is a behavioral economic assessment tool designed to measure the relative reinforcing efficacy of cigarette smoking across different prices. An exponential demand equation has become a standard model for analyzing purchase task data, but its utility is compromised by its inability to accommodate values of zero consumption. We propose a two-part mixed effects model that keeps the same exponential demand equation for modeling nonzero consumption values, while providing a logistic regression for the binary outcome of zero versus nonzero consumption. Therefore, the proposed model can accommodate zero consumption values and retain the features of the exponential demand equation at the same time. As a byproduct, the logistic regression component of the proposed model provides a new demand index, the "derived breakpoint", for the price above which a subject is more likely to be abstinent than to be smoking. We apply the proposed model to data collected at baseline from college students (N = 1,217) enrolled in a randomized clinical trial utilizing financial incentives to motivate tobacco cessation. Monte Carlo simulations showed that the proposed model provides better fits than an existing model. We note that the proposed methodology is applicable to other purchase task data, for example, drugs of abuse.

''Quit & Win'' Contests Among College Students: Predictors of Long-Term Smoking Abstinence.

PURPOSE: To determine smoking abstinence rates and predictors of abstinence among college students enrolled in a campus-based Quit & Win contest. DESIGN: Pre-post measure with no comparison group. SETTING: Contests conducted on seven college campuses in 2007. SUBJECTS: Subjects (N = 484) were 23.7 ± 6.8 years of age, 61% female, 16.3% nonwhite, and smoked 12.5 ± 7.8 cigarettes per day on 28.0 ± 4.8 days in the past month. INTERVENTION: Participants abstinent for the 30-day contest were eligible for a lottery-based prize. Assessments were completed at baseline, end of contest, and 6 months after enrollment. MEASURES: The 6-month survey assessed retrospective abstinence during the contest period and the prior 6 months and 7- and 30-day point prevalence abstinence at the time of the survey. ANALYSIS: Chi-square test was used to compare baseline characteristics among participants from 2-versus 4-year schools. Smoking abstinence was assessed by participant self-report. Both a simple imputation method (i.e., missing = smoking) and completers-only analyses were conducted. Stepwise logistic regression was used to determine baseline predictors of abstinence. RESULTS: Thirty-day abstinence rate was 52.5% during the contest month and 20.5% at the 6-month follow-up. Baseline intention to stay quit (odds ratio [OR] = 1.56, p = .01), cigarettes smoked per day (OR = .67, p = .04), and 2-year (vs. 4-year) college (OR = 1.65, p = .05) predicted abstinence at 6 months. CONCLUSION: Intention to stay quit even without winning a prize, a measure of intrinsic motivation, predicted both short- and long-term abstinence.

Proactive tobacco treatment offering free nicotine replacement therapy and telephone counselling for socioeconomically disadvantaged smokers: a randomised clinical trial.

BACKGROUND: Evidenced-based tobacco cessation treatments are underused, especially by socioeconomically disadvantaged smokers. This contributes to widening socioeconomic disparities in tobacco-related morbidity and mortality. METHODS: The Offering Proactive Treatment Intervention trial tested the effects of a proactive outreach tobacco treatment intervention on population-level smoking abstinence and tobacco treatment use among a population-based sample of socioeconomically disadvantaged smokers. Current smokers (n=2406), regardless of interest in quitting, who were enrolled in the Minnesota Health Care Programs, the state's publicly funded healthcare programmes for low-income populations, were randomly assigned to proactive outreach or usual care. The intervention comprised proactive outreach (tailored mailings and telephone calls) and free cessation treatment (nicotine replacement therapy and intensive, telephone counselling). Usual care comprised access to a primary care physician, insurance coverage of Food and Drug Administration-approved smoking cessation medications, and the state's telephone quitline. The primary outcome was self-reported 6-month prolonged smoking abstinence at 1 year and was assessed by follow-up survey. FINDINGS: The proactive intervention group had a higher prolonged abstinence rate at 1 year than usual care (16.5% vs 12.1%, OR 1.47, 95% CI 1.12 to 1.93). The effect of the proactive intervention on prolonged abstinence persisted in selection models accounting for non-response. In analysis of secondary outcomes, use of evidence-based tobacco cessation treatments were significantly greater among proactive outreach participants compared with usual care, particularly combination counselling and medications (17.4% vs 3.6%, OR 5.69, 95% CI 3.85 to 8.40). INTERPRETATION: Population-based proactive tobacco treatment increases engagement in evidence-based treatment and is effective in long-term smoking cessation among socioeconomically disadvantaged smokers. Findings suggest that dissemination of population-based proactive treatment approaches is an effective strategy to reduce the prevalence of smoking and socioeconomic disparities in tobacco use. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT01123967.

Enhancing Quit & Win contests to improve cessation among college smokers: a randomized clinical trial.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Quit & Win contests (in which smokers pledge to quit smoking for a defined period in exchange for the chance to win a prize) may be well-suited for college smokers. We tested the effectiveness of multiple versus single Quit & Win contests and that of added counseling versus no counseling in smoking cessation. DESIGN: A two-by-two, randomized controlled trial with 6-month follow-up. SETTING: Nineteen institutions in Minnesota, Texas, Ohio and Wisconsin. PARTICIPANTS: College student smokers (n = 1217) were randomized within site to four conditions: single (n = 306), multiple contests alone (n = 309), single contest plus counseling (n = 296) or multiple contests with counseling (n = 306). INTERVENTION: Participants in the standard contest condition (T1 and T2) were asked to abstain from all tobacco products for a 30-day period; those with confirmed abstinence were eligible for a lottery-based prize. Participants assigned to the multiple contest conditions (T3 and T4) participated in the 30-day contest and were enrolled automatically into two additional contest periods with an escalating prize structure. Participants randomized into the counseling conditions (T2 and T4) received up to six telephone-administered Motivation and Problem Solving (MAPS) counseling sessions over the 12-week treatment period. MEASURES: The primary outcome was biochemically verified 30-day point prevalence (PP) abstinence rate at 6 months. Secondary outcomes were the same abstinence at end of treatment (4 months) and a proxy measure of 6-month verified continuous abstinence rate. Outcomes were based on all participants randomized. FINDINGS: We found no evidence of an interaction between number of contests and counseling. Abstinence rates for multiple (13.5%) and single (11.7%) contests were not significantly different at 6 months [odds ratio (OR) = 1.18, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.84-1.66]. The addition of counseling did not improve 6-month abstinence significantly (13.7 versus 11.6%, OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 0.86-1.70). Multiple contests increased abstinence at 4 months (19.3 versus 10.3%, OR = 2.09, 95% CI = 1.50-2.91) and continuous abstinence at 6 months (7.8 versus 3.8%, OR = 2.14, 95% CI = 1.28-3.56). CONCLUSION: Multiple Quit & Win contests may increase smoking abstinence rates in college students more than single contests, but it is not clear whether adding counseling to these interventions produces any additional benefit.

Social contingencies and college quit and win contest: a qualitative inquiry.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the social contingencies associated with participation in a college Quit and Win contest to promote smoking cessation. METHODS: Six focus groups (N = 27) were conducted with college students who participated in a Quit and Win research trial. RESULTS: Themes included: (1) participants reluctant to disclose quit decision; (2) perception of little support in their quit attempt, and (3) the social environment as a trigger for relapse. CONCLUSIONS: Although Quit and Win contests appear to motivate an initial quit attempt, the reluctance of smokers to disclose their quit attempt limits the potential positive impact of social support when utilizing this public service campaign.

Proactive tobacco treatment for low income smokers: study protocol of a randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: There is a high prevalence of smoking and high burden of tobacco-related diseases among low-income populations. Effective, evidenced-based smoking cessation treatments are available, but low-income smokers are less likely than higher-income smokers to use these treatments, especially the most comprehensive forms that include a combination of pharmacotherapy and intensive behavioral counseling. METHODS/DESIGN: The primary objectives of this randomized controlled trial are to compare the effects of a proactive tobacco treatment intervention compared to usual care on population-level smoking abstinence rates and tobacco treatment utilization rates among a diverse population of low-income smokers, and to determine the cost-effectiveness of proactive tobacco treatment intervention. The proactive care intervention systematically offers low-income smokers free and easy access to evidence-based treatments and has two primary components: (1) proactive outreach to current smokers in the form of mailed invitation materials and telephone calls containing targeted health messages, and (2) facilitated access to free, comprehensive, evidence-based tobacco cessation treatments in the form of NRT and intensive, telephone-based behavioral counseling. The study aims to include a population-based sample (N = 2500) of adult smokers enrolled in the Minnesota Health Care Programs (MHCP), a state-funded health insurance plan for low-income persons. Baseline data is obtained from MHCP administrative databases and a participant survey that is conducted prior to randomization. Outcome data is collected from a follow-up survey conducted 12 months after randomization and MHCP administrative data. The primary outcome is six-month prolonged smoking abstinence at one year and is assessed at the population level. All randomized individuals are asked to complete the follow-up survey, regardless of whether they participated in tobacco treatment. Data analysis of the primary aims will follow intent-to-treat methodology. DISCUSSION: There is a critical need to increase access to effective tobacco dependence treatments. This randomized trial evaluates the effects of proactive outreach coupled with free NRT and telephone counseling on the population impact of tobacco dependence treatment. If proven to be effective and cost-effective, national dissemination of proactive treatment approaches would reduce tobacco-related morbidity, mortality, and health care costs for low income Americans. CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01123967.

Thirdhand tobacco smoke: a tobacco-specific lung carcinogen on surfaces in smokers' homes.

INTRODUCTION: Thirdhand tobacco smoke consists of substances remaining on the surfaces or in the dust of areas where people have smoked. While previous studies have demonstrated the presence of nicotine and various other constituents of tobacco smoke on surfaces in smokers' homes, none has investigated the presence of tobacco-specific carcinogens. METHODS: We used liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry to analyze surface dust samples from both the homes of smokers and nonsmokers for the powerful tobacco-specific lung carcinogen 4-(methylnitrosamino)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanone (NNK). RESULTS: We positively identified NNK on surfaces in 33 of 37 smokers' homes (700±788 pg/100cm(2) [range, not detected-3,500 pg/100cm(2)]), but only in 3 of 19 nonsmokers' homes (235±176 pg/100cm(2) in the homes where NNK was detected [range, not detected-435 pg/100cm(2)]). The differences in occurrence and levels of NNK in the homes of smokers and nonsmokers were significant (p < .0001). CONCLUSIONS: The powerful tobacco-specific lung carcinogen NNK is present on surfaces in most homes occupied by smokers. Potential renters or buyers of apartments or homes should be notified if previous residents were smokers in order to avoid unnecessary exposure of their families to a potent lung carcinogen.

Cotinine and tobacco-specific carcinogen exposure among nondaily smokers in a multiethnic sample.

BACKGROUND: Nondaily smoking has increased among current U.S. smokers during the past decade and is practiced by a significant percentage of smokers. Although research in nondaily smoking has grown, little is known about levels of exposure to tobacco toxicants among nondaily smokers and their variation across ethnic groups. METHODS: We examined urinary levels of cotinine and a tobacco-specific nitrosamine (NNAL) in community participants. Associations between the biomarker data and smoking characteristics were evaluated with Spearman's correlation analysis. RESULTS: Participants included 28 Blacks, 4 Latinos, and 25 Whites who smoked at least 1 cigarette on 4-24 days in the past 30 days. Participants averaged 3.3 (SD = 2.1) cigarettes per day (cpd) on days smoked, they smoked an average of 13.0 (SD = 5.4) days in the past month, and they smoked nondaily for 10.5 (SD = 10.5) years. Median levels of creatinine-normalized cotinine and NNAL were 490.9 ng/mg and 140.7 pg/mg, respectively. NNAL and cotinine were highly correlated (r = .84); NNAL and cotinine were modestly correlated with cpd (r = .39 and r = .34; all p values <.05). The number of days smoked per month was not associated with any biomarker levels. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate that nondaily smokers are, on average, exposed to significant levels of nicotine and carcinogenic nitrosamines, with exposures of 40%-50% of those seen in daily smokers. This level of exposure suggests a significant health risk. Nicotine and carcinogen exposure is most closely related to number of cigarettes smoked per day but not to number of days per month of smoking.

Motivational interviewing to enhance nicotine patch treatment for smoking cessation among homeless smokers: a randomized controlled trial.

AIMS: To assess the effects of adding motivational interviewing (MI) counseling to nicotine patch for smoking cessation among homeless smokers. DESIGN: Two-group randomized controlled trial with 26-week follow-up. PARTICIPANTS AND SETTING: A total of 430 homeless smokers from emergency shelters and transitional housing units in Minneapolis/St Paul, Minnesota, USA. INTERVENTION AND MEASUREMENTS: All participants received 8-week treatment of 21-mg nicotine patch. In addition, participants in the intervention group received six individual sessions of MI counseling which aimed to increase adherence to nicotine patches and to motivate cessation. Participants in the standard care control group received one session of brief advice to quit smoking. Primary outcome was 7-day abstinence from cigarette smoking at 26 weeks, as validated by exhaled carbon monoxide and salivary cotinine. FINDINGS: Using intention-to-treat analysis, verified 7-day abstinence rate at week 26 for the intervention group was non-significantly higher than for the control group (9.3% versus 5.6%, P = 0.15). Among participants who did not quit smoking, reduction in number of cigarettes from baseline to week 26 was equally high in both study groups (-13.7 ± 11.9 for MI versus -13.5 ± 16.2 for standard care). CONCLUSIONS: Adding motivational interviewing counseling to nicotine patch did not increase smoking rate significantly at 26-week follow-up for homeless smokers.

Analysis of cigarette purchase task instrument data with a left-censored mixed effects model.

The drug purchase task is a frequently used instrument for measuring the relative reinforcing efficacy (RRE) of a substance, a central concept in psychopharmacological research. Although a purchase task instrument, such as the cigarette purchase task (CPT), provides a comprehensive and inexpensive way to assess various aspects of a drug's RRE, the application of conventional statistical methods to data generated from such an instrument may not be adequate by simply ignoring or replacing the extra zeros or missing values in the data with arbitrary small consumption values, for example, 0.001. We applied the left-censored mixed effects model to CPT data from a smoking cessation study of college students and demonstrated its superiority over the existing methods with simulation studies. Theoretical implications of the findings, limitations of the proposed method, and future directions of research are also discussed.

Smoking characteristics and comorbidities in the power to quit randomized clinical trial for homeless smokers.

INTRODUCTION: Smoking prevalence in homeless populations is strikingly high (∼70%); yet, little is known about effective smoking cessation interventions for this population. We conducted a community-based clinical trial, Power To Quit (PTQ), to assess the effects of motivational interviewing (MI) and nicotine patch (nicotine replacement therapy [NRT]) on smoking cessation among homeless smokers. This paper describes the smoking characteristics and comorbidities of smokers in the study. METHODS: Four hundred and thirty homeless adult smokers were randomized to either the intervention arm (NRT + MI) or the control arm (NRT + Brief Advice). Baseline assessment included demographic information, shelter status, smoking history, motivation to quit smoking, alcohol/other substance abuse, and psychiatric comorbidities. RESULTS: Of the 849 individuals who completed the eligibility survey, 578 (68.1%) were eligible and 430 (74.4% of eligibles) were enrolled. Participants were predominantly Black, male, and had mean age of 44.4 years (S D = 9.9), and the majority were unemployed (90.5%). Most participants reported sleeping in emergency shelters; nearly half had been homeless for more than a year. Nearly all the participants were daily smokers who smoked an average of 20 cigarettes/day. Nearly 40% had patient health questionnaire-9 depression scores in the moderate or worse range, and more than 80% screened positive for lifetime history of drug abuse or dependence. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the feasibility of enrolling a diverse sample of homeless smokers into a smoking cessation clinical trial. The uniqueness of the study sample enables investigators to examine the influence of nicotine dependence as well as psychiatric and substance abuse comorbidities on smoking cessation outcomes.

Perceived treatment assignment and smoking cessation in a clinical trial of bupropion versus placebo.

INTRODUCTION: Psychoactive effects of smoking cessation medi cations such as bupropion may allow participants in smoking cessation clinical trials to correctly guess their treatment assignment at rates greater than chance. Previous research has found an association between perceived treatment assignment and smoking cessation rates among moderate to heavy smokers (≥ 10 cigarettes per day [cpd]) in two bupropion clinical trials. METHODS: The aim of this study was to determine the impact of perceived treatment assignment on end-of-treatment cotinine-verified smoking abstinence at Week 7 and Week 26 among African American light smokers (≤ 10 cpd) enrolled in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of bupropion. Participants (n = 390) included in this study reported their perceived treatment assignment on the end-of-treatment (Week 7) survey. RESULTS: Participants were predominantly female (63.1%), 48.1 years of age (SD = 11.2), and smoked an average of 8 cpd (SD = 2.5). Participants given bupropion were more likely to correctly guess their treatment assignment (69%; 140/203) than those assigned to placebo (51.3%; 96/187) (p < .0001). After adjusting for treatment condition, participants who perceived assignment to bupropion versus placebo were not more likely to be abstinent than those who perceived assignment to placebo at Week 7 or at Week 26. The interaction between treatment and perceived treatment assignment was also nonsignificant. CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with two previous studies testing bupropion, participants assigned to bupropion were more likely to correctly guess their treatment assignment than those assigned to placebo. However, in contrast to previous studies with heavier smokers, perceived treatment assignment did not significantly impact cotinine-verified abstinence in light smokers.

Subjective social status predicts smoking abstinence among light smokers.

OBJECTIVES: To determine if community subjective social status (SSS) predicted smoking abstinence through 26 weeks postrandomization among 755 African American light smokers of low SES (socioeconomic status). METHODS: Participants were enrolled in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial, which examined the efficacy of nicotine gum and counseling for smoking cessation. RESULTS: Results indicated that SSS predicted smoking abstinence over time [P=.046; odds ratio (OR) =1.075 (1.001-1.155)] after adjusting for covariates. CONCLUSIONS: Further research is needed to understand the effects of community SSS on smoking cessation among heavy smokers and other ethnic groups.

Change in smoking, diet, and walking for exercise in Blacks.

Positive changes in one health behavior may be accompanied by other constructive health behavior changes. Thus, the authors investigated the association of smoking reduction and cessation to changes in fruit and vegetable (FV) intake and engaging in walking for exercise. This study included 539 Black light smokers (≤10 cigarettes per day ≥25 days/month) enrolled in a 2 × 2 factorial study (placebo vs. nicotine gum, health education vs. motivational interviewing). Reducing cigarette consumption (p = .02) and quitting smoking (p < .01), as well as receiving the nicotine gum (p = .04), was associated with increased FV intake, after controlling for baseline FV intake. Compared with those who did not reduce their smoking, both reducers (p < .001) and quitters (p < .001) were more likely to walk for exercise at follow-up, after controlling for baseline walking status (p = .01). Thus, addressing one health risk behavior may prompt other positive health behaviors, which may argue for developing interventions targeting multiple health risk behaviors.