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"Our results showed that hypnotherapy resulted in higher quit ratescompared with NRT alone," said Faysal Hasan, MD, FCCP, North Shore MedicalCenter, Salem, MA. "Hypnotherapy appears to be quite effective and a goodmodality to incorporate into a smoking cessation program after hospitaldischarge."
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Dr. Hasan and colleagues from North Shore Medical Center and MassachusettsGeneral Hospital compared the quit rates of 67 smoking patients hospitalizedwith a cardiopulmonary diagnosis. All patients were approached about smokingcessation and all included in the study were patients who expressed a desireto quit smoking. At discharge, patients were divided into four groups based ontheir preferred method of smoking cessation treatment: hypnotherapy (n=14),NRT (n=19), NRT and hypnotherapy (n=18), and a group of controls who preferredto quit "cold turkey" (n=16). All patients received self-help brochures. Thecontrol group received brief counseling, but other groups received intensivecounseling, free supply of NRT and/or a free hypnotherapy session within 7days of discharge, as well as follow up telephone calls at 1, 2, 4, 8, 12, and26 weeks after discharge. Patients receiving hypnotherapy also were taught todo self-hypnosis and were given tapes to play at the end of the session.
At 26 weeks after discharge, 50 percent of patients treated withhypnotherapy alone were nonsmokers, compared with 50 percent in theNRT/hypnotherapy group, 25 percent in the control group, and 15.78 percent inthe NRT group. Patients admitted with a cardiac diagnosis were more likely toquit smoking at 26 weeks (45.5 percent) than patients admitted with apulmonary diagnosis (15.63 percent).
"Patients admitted with coronary symptoms may have experienced 'fear anddoom' and decided to alter a major health risk to their disease whenapproached about smoking cessation," said Dr. Hasan. "In contrast, pulmonarypatients admitted for another exacerbation may not have felt the same threat.They likely felt they can live for another day and continue the smokinghabit."
The researchers note that hospitalization is an important opportunity tointervene among patients who smoke.
"Doctors and other health personnel should use this occasion to firmlyrecommend smoking cessation and emphasize the impact of smoking on theirdisease process and hospital admission," said Dr. Hasan. "Pulmonologists, inparticular, should make a stronger case and more passionate message to theirpatients, and efforts should be coordinated with counseling."
"As physicians, we are constantly reviewing new approaches for smokingcessation and revisiting existing approaches to confirm their effectiveness,"said Alvin V. Thomas, MD, FCCP, President of the American College of ChestPhysicians. "The results of this study and many others confirm that using amultimodality approach to smoking cessation is optimal for success."
CHEST 2007 is the 73rd annual international scientific assembly of theAmerican College of Chest Physicians, held October 20-25 in Chicago, IL. ACCPrepresents 17,000 members who provide patient care in the areas of pulmonary,critical care, and sleep medicine in the United States and throughout t
