Factors Related to Smoking Relapse Within Six-Months of Smoking Cessation Among Inpatients

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify factors associated with smoking relapse within 6 months after quit attempts among inpatients of a university hospital.Methods: The subjects of this study were 572 inpatients of the National University Hospitals in Daejeon & Sejong who had enrolled in the smoking cessation service provided by the Daejeon·Sejong Tobacco Control Center and attempted to quit smoking. The data used in the study were extracted from the Smoking Cessation Service Integrated Information System. The Kaplan-Meier method and Cox Proportional hazards model were used to identify variables associated with smoking relapse within 6 months.Results: The smoking relapse rate within 6 months was 76.7%, and variables associated with relapse included the absence of supporters for quitting smoking (hazard ratio [HR]=1.42, 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.00-2.02), nicotine dependence (HR=1.09, 95% CI=1.03-1.15), the use of prescription medications (including varenicline or bupropion) (HR=3.99, 95% CI=1.83-8.71), and the number of consultations (HR=0.67, 95% CI= 0.63-0.70).Conclusion: As a result of the study, the number of consultations showed the strongest correlation with abstinence within 6 months. This implies that it is necessary to increase the counseling participation rate of the subjects so that smoking cessation counseling can be continued after discharge, and it is also required to provide support education to guardians during hospitalization for effective smoking relapse prevention.