Effects of brief mindfulness training on smoking cue-reactivity in tobacco use disorder: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Background The prevalence of Tobacco Use Disorder (TUD) represents a significant and pressing global public health concern, with far-reaching and deleterious consequences for individuals, communities, and healthcare systems. The craving caused by smoking cue is an important trigger for relapse, fundamentally hindering the cessation of cigarette smoking. Mindfulness interventions focusing on cue-reactivity was effective for the treatment of related dependence. Brief mindfulness training (BMT) meets the short-term needs for intervention but the effects still need to be examined. The objective of the present study is to investigate the impact of BMT intervention on smoking cue-reactivity among Chinese college students with TUD, to uncover the dynamic models of brain function involved in this process. Method A randomized control trial (RCT) based on electroencephalography (EEG) was designed. We aim to recruit 90 participants and randomly assign to the BMT and control group (CON) with 1:1 ratio. A brief mindfulness training will be administered to experimental group. After the intervention, data collection will be conducted in the follow-up stage with 5 timepoints of assessments. EEG data will be recorded during the smoking cue-reactivity task and ‘STOP’ brief mindfulness task. The primary outcomes include subjective reports of smoking craving, changes in EEG indicators, and mindfulness measures. The secondary outcomes will be daily smoking behaviours, affect and impulsivity, as well as indicators reflecting correlation between mindfulness and smoking cue-reactivity. To evaluate the impact of mindfulness training, a series of linear mixed-effects models will be employed. Specifically, within-group effects will be examined by analysing the longitudinal data. Additionally, the effect size for all statistical measurements will be reported, offering a comprehensive view of the observed effects. Discussion The current study aims to assess the impact of brief mindfulness-based intervention on smoking cue-reactivity in TUD. It also expected to enhance our understanding of the underlying processes involved in brain function and explore potential EEG biomarkers at multiple time points. Trial registration Trial registration number: ChiCTR2300069363, registered on 14 March 2023. Protocol Version 1.0., 10 April 2023.