Predictors of 6-month tobacco abstinence among 1224 cigarette smokers treated for nicotine dependence

This study examined baseline characteristics associated with abstinence from tobacco 6 months after treatment for nicotine dependence. A total of 1224 cigarette smokers (619 females, 605 males) receiving clinical services for treatment of nicotine dependence between January 1, 1995 and June 30, 1997 were studied. The intervention involves a 45-min consultation with a nicotine dependence counselor. A treatment plan individualized to the patient's needs is then developed. The main outcome measure was the self-reported 7-day point prevalence abstinence from tobacco obtained by telephone interview 6-months after the consultation. A bootstrap resampling methodology for predictor variable selection was used to identify a set of multivariate predictors of 6-month tobacco abstinence. Five variables were multivariately associated with tobacco abstinence: male gender, no current psychiatric diagnosis, higher stage of change, longest duration of previous abstinence from tobacco of <1 or ≥30 days, and Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND) score of ≤5. Assessment of these variables may be useful clinically by assisting health care providers in tailoring nicotine dependence interventions to enhance outcomes.