Tobacco Dependence

Nancy A. Rigotti, M.D.Director, Tobacco Research & Treatment Center Massachusetts General Hospital

Associate Professor of Medicine Harvard Medical School

William C. Bailey, M.D.Professor of Medicine and Director

Eminent Scholar Chair in Pulmonary DiseasesUAB Lung Health Center

Birmingham, AL

PACE (Prevention and Cessation Education) Collaboration of 12 US medical schools funded by the

National Cancer Institute

Boston UniversityCase Western Reserve UniversityDartmouth CollegeHarvard UniversityLoma Linda UniversityUniversity of Alabama – BirminghamUniversity of California – Los AngelesUniversity of IowaUniversity of KentuckyUniversity of MassachusettsUniversity of RochesterUniversity of South Florida

WHERE YOU COME IN…

From curricular assessments at all 12 medical schools, a national conference reached a consensus…

Most U.S. medical students graduate without tobacco cessation and prevention skills

Preceptorship Module Community Experience Module Pediatrics Module

PRECEPTORSHIP MODULE

Rationale Students must practice new skills learned

in the classroom Students model what they see in clinical

settings Preceptors are key role models and

mentors

TOBACCO USE IN PERSPECTIVE

Leading preventable cause of death

>400,000 deaths per year in US

4 million deaths per year worldwide

Half of regular smokers die of a

tobacco- related disease

6

SMOKING DEATHS IN PERSPECTIVE

Data from Mokdad AH, Marks JS, Stroup DF, Gerberding JL. Actual causes of death in the United States, 2000. JAMA. 2004;291(10):1238-1245.

Actual Causes of Death in the United States, 2000

3.5%

0.7%0.8%1.2%1.8%2.3%3.1%

16.6%18.1%

0%2%4%6%8%

10%12%14%16%18%20%

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Actual Cause

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53,000 deaths per year

Respiratory illness - children of smokers

Lung cancer - nonsmoking spouses of smokers

Cardiovascular disease - nonsmoking spouses

PASSIVE SMOKING

Men

Women

0

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

6 0

1 9 5 5 1 9 6 0 1 9 6 5 1 9 7 0 1 9 7 5 1 9 8 0 1 9 8 5 1 9 9 0 1 9 9 5 2 0 0 0

Y E A R

% C

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SU.S. ADULT SMOKING PREVALENCE

1955-2000

Source: 1955 Current Population Survey; 1965-2000 National Health Interview Survey.

*Before 1992, current smokers were defined as persons who reported having smoked >100 cigarettes and who currently smoked. Since 1992, current smokers were defined as persons who reported having smoked >100 cigarettes during their lifetime and who reported now smoking every day day or some days.

25.7%

21.0%

Why should I treat tobacco dependence?

• Tobacco causes premature death of almost half a million Americans each year

• 1/3 of all tobacco users in this country will die prematurely from tobacco dependence losing an average of 14 years

• 70% of smokers see a physician each year

• At least 70% of smokers want to quit

Are physicians intervening in tobacco use?

In 38 primary care practices:Tobacco was discussed in 21% of encounters.

Discussion was:– more common in the 58% of practices with standard forms for

recording smoking status

– more common during new patient visits

– less common with older patients

– less common with physicians in practice more than 10 years.

» Ellerbeck, Ahluwalia, et al. Direct observation of smoking cessation activities in primary care practice.

J Fam Pract. 2001;50:688-693

Barriers to treating tobacco dependence

“Not enough time.”

“Patients don’t want to hear about it.”

“I can’t help patients stop.”

“Not enough time”

“Minimal interventions lasting

less than 3 minutes increase overall tobacco abstinence rates.”

The PHS Guideline

(Strength of Evidence = A)

“Patients don’t want to hear about it”

“Smoking cessation interventions during physician visits were associated with increased patient satisfaction with their care among those who smoke.”

• 1,898 patients in a study who reported that they had been asked about tobacco use or advised to quit during the latest visit had 10% greater satisfaction rating and 5% less dissatisfaction than those not reporting such discussions

Mayo Clin Proc. 2001;76:138-143.

“I can’t help patients stop”

Effective clinical interventions exist:

The Public Health Service Clinical Practice Guideline Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence was published in June, 2000 and offers effective treatments for tobacco dependence.

Tobacco dependence is a chronic disease

• Tobacco dependence requires ongoing rather than acute care

• Relapse is a component of the chronic nature of the nicotine dependence — not an indication of personal failure by the patient or the clinician

Tobacco results in a true drug dependence

• Tobacco dependence exhibits classic characteristics of drug dependence

• Nicotine is:

– Psychoactive

– Tolerance producing

• Causes physical dependence characterized by withdrawal symptoms upon cessation

The 5 A’s For Patients Willing To Quit

• ASK about tobacco use.• ADVISE to quit.• ASSESS willingness to make a quit

attempt.• ASSIST in quit attempt.• ARRANGE for follow-up.

ASK

VITAL SIGNS Blood Pressure: _______________________________ Pulse: ________________ Weight: _______________ Temperature: ________________________________ Respiratory Rate: _____________________________ Tobacco Use: Current Former Never (circle one)

EVERY patient at EVERY visit

ADVISE

• Once tobacco use status has been identified and documented, advise all tobacco users to quit

• Even brief advice to quit results in greater quit rates

• Advice should be:- clear - strong- personalized “As your health care

provider, I must tell you that the most important thing you

can do to improve your health is to stop smoking.”

ASSESS

After providing a clear, strong, and personalized message to quit, you must determine whether the patient is willing to quit at this time

“Are you willing to try to quit at this time? I can

help you.”

ASSIST

• Help develop a quit plan• Provide practical counseling• Provide intra-treatment social support• Help your patient obtain extra-treatment social

support• Recommend pharmacotherapy except in special

circumstances• Provide supplementary materials

Developing a quit plan

• Set a quit date

• Review past quit attempts

• Anticipate challenges

• Remove tobacco products

• Avoid

– Alcohol use

– Exposure to tobacco

Counsel your patients to quit

“Minimal interventions lasting less than 3 minutes increase overall tobacco abstinence rates”

The PHS Guideline

(Strength of Evidence = A)

“There is a strong dose-response relation between the session length of person-to-person contact and successful treatment outcomes. Intensive interventions are more effective than less intensive interventions and should be used whenever possible”

The PHS Guideline

(Strength of Evidence = A)

First-line pharmacotherapies

• Bupropion SR

• Nicotine gum

• Nicotine inhaler

• Nicotine nasal spray

• Nicotine patch

Bupropion SR

• Only non-nicotine medication approved by the FDA as an aid to smoking cessation treatment

• Available by prescription only (USA)

• Mechanism of action: presumably blocks neural reuptake of dopamine and/or norepinephrine

Bupropion SR

ContraindicationsSeizure disorder

MAO inhibitor within previous 2 weeks

Hx of anorexia nervosa or bulimia

Current use of Wellbutrin

Side effectsInsomnia

Dry mouth

Bupropion SR

• Dosing: – start 1-2 weeks before quit date

– 150 mg orally once daily x 3 day

– 150 mg orally twice daily x 7-12 weeks

– no taper necessary at end of treatment

• Maintenance - efficacious as maintenance medication for <6 months post-cessation

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)

• Nicotine is active ingredient

• Supplied as steady dose (patch) or self-administered (gum, inhaler, nasal spray, lozenge)

• Self-administered products should be used on scheduled basis initially before tapered to ad lib use and eventual discontinuation

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)

• No evidence of increased cardiovascular risk with NRT

• Medical contraindications:

– immediate myocardial infarction (< 2 weeks)

– serious arrhythmia

– serious or worsening angina pectoris

– accelerated hypertension

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT)

• Nicotine gum• Nicotine patch• Nicotine inhaler• Nicotine nasal spray

Nicotine gum

• 2 mg vs 4 mg• Chew and park• Absorbed in a basic environment• Use enough pieces each day

Nicotine patch

• Available as both prescription and OTC

• A new patch is applied each morning

• Rotating placement site can reduce irritation

Nicotine inhaler

• Available by prescription

• Frequent puffing is required

• Eating or drinking before and during administration should be avoided

Nicotine nasal spray

• Available by prescription

• Patient should not sniff, swallow, or inhale the medication

• Initial dosing should be 1 to 2 doses per hour, increasing as needed

• Dosing should not exceed 40 per day

Combination Pharmacotherapy

Combination NRT• Patch + gum or patch + nasal spray are more

effective than a single NRT

• Encourage use in patients unable to quit using single agent

• Caution patients on risk of nicotine overdose

• Currently combination therapy is not an FDA-approved treatment option

ARRANGE

• Schedule a follow-up contact within one week after the quit date– Telephone contact

– Quit lines

• The majority of relapse occurs in the first two weeks after quitting

• Preventing Relapse– Congratulate success– Encourage continued abstinence– Discuss with your patient:

• benefits of quitting• barriers

• If your patient has used tobacco, remind him or her that the relapse should be viewed as a learning experience

• Relapse is consistent with the chronic nature of tobacco dependence; not a sign of failure

Relapse

“How has stopping tobacco use helped

you?.”

Treating patients who are not ready to make a quit attempt

• RELEVANCE: Tailor advice and discussion to each patient.

• RISKS: Outline risks of continued smoking.

• REWARDS: Outline the benefits of quitting.

• ROADBLOCKS: Identify barriers to quitting.

• REPETITION: Reinforce the motivational message at every visit.

“Not since the polio vaccine has this nation had a better opportunity to make a significant impact in public health.”

David Satcher, MD, PhD,Former U.S. Surgeon General

HELPING YOUR STUDENT USE THE 5 A’s

Model the behavior

Supervise

Provide feedback to student

STUDENTS COUNSEL MORE WHEN THEIR PRECEPTORS…

SERVE AS ROLE MODEL

Counsel patients about smoking and discuss smoking cessation strategies while the student observes

STUDENTS COUNSEL MORE WHEN THEIR PRECEPTORS…

USE TEACHING SKILLS

Set clear goals and expectations

Use the patient interaction as a

teachable moment

Give feedback on performance