A digitally delivered and fully automated internet- and mobile-based smoking cessation programme : a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Objective: The primary objective of this study was to test the long-term (6 months) efficacy of an Internet- and mobile-based smoking cessation programme. Design: A two-armed randomized control trial. Participants surveyed at baseline and 3-days pre-cessation, and 1, 3, and 6 months post-cessation. Setting: Norway. The study and the experimental condition occurred via the Internet and mobile-phone. The control condition received self-help booklets through the postal mail service. Participants: A total of 427 eligible participants were assessed of which 290 were included in the study. Participants were treatment seeking smokers recruited online through local and regional covering newspapers. All participants were above the age of 18, had daily access to the Internet and a mobile phone, and currently smoking five cigarettes or more on a daily basis. Methods: The Internet- and mobile phone-based intervention consists of image- and text-based websites containing different educational components. The purpose of the mobile phone is to support the activities and processes initiated through the web with some additional features. The control condition received a self-help booklet. Online self-report measures were used to collect data with no biochemical verification while email reminders and telephone interviews were conducted as follow-up. The primary outcome measure was 7-days abstinence at 6 months. Secondary outcomes included 7-days abstinence at 1 and 3 months. Results: Using an intent-to-treat analysis, more participants in the experimental condition had quit smoking compared to the control group at 6 months: 42 (29%) vs. 20 (14%), odds ratio = 2.59 (95% confidence intervals: 1.43 - 4.69.), p = .002. The treatment effect was also present at 1 (odds ratio = 3.46, 95% confidence intervals: 2.01 - 5.95) and 3 months (odds ratio = 2.93, 95% confidence intervals: 1.67 - 5.14). Conclusions: These results suggest that a smoking cessation programme can be successfully delivered via the Internet and mobile-phone.

Keywords: Smoking cessation, randomized control trial, Internet, mobile phone, self-efficacy, coping planning.