Efficacy of a smoking cessation intervention for adolescents and young adults provided by text messaging
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN19739792 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN19739792 |
| Secondary identifying numbers | 10.007207 |
- Submission date
- 11/05/2011
- Registration date
- 20/05/2011
- Last edited
- 22/08/2013
- Recruitment status
- No longer recruiting
- Overall study status
- Completed
- Condition category
- Mental and Behavioural Disorders
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims?
In Switzerland, regular cigarette smoking is particularly widespread among adolescents and young adults with lower educational level. Traditional measures to promote smoking cessation (stopping smoking), such as smoking cessation groups, are time- and labour-intensive and are used by only a small proportion of young people. To promote smoking cessation in this group, the most promising programs take into account their lifestyle as well as their individual motivation to quit and their ability to understand smoking cessation information. Mobile phone text messaging offers novel opportunities to provide personalised messages to promote smoking cessation in large groups of adolescents and young adults.
This study aims to see how well a text messaging program to promote smoking cessation in regularly smoking apprentices in Switzerland will work.
Who can participate?
Participants are adolescents and young adults (typically aged 14-26 years) who are attending vocational schools, who are smoking cigarettes daily or occasionally, and who own a mobile phone.
What does the study involve?
A text messaging program generating personalised messages using data from a web-based survey will be developed. The text messages will be sent to the participants over a period of three months. The messages will take into account demographic data and the individuals smoking behaviour based on the Health Action Process Approach. Participants will receive two text messages to promote smoking cessation per week. Program participants with an intention to quit smoking can also use a more intensive text messaging program to prepare for their quit day and for relapse prevention afterwards. The program will be evaluated within a controlled trial to see how well it works, and to see how well it is accepted by participants. Participants will be assigned randomly to an intervention group receiving the program or an assessment only control group. 6 months later, the participants will be asked if they have smoked at all in the past 7 days.
The program offers an effective and inexpensive way to promote smoking cessation among young people of different education and independent of their motivation to quit.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
Possible benefits of program participation are an increased chance of becoming a non-smoker, an increased intention to quit smoking, and a lower level of nicotine dependence. We do not expect there to be any risks associated with program participation.
Where is the study run from?
Approximately 130 school classes from approximately 30 vocational schools in Switzerland.
When is study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
The study starts in September 2011 and ends in March 2013.
Who is funding the study?
The study is funded by the Swiss Tobacco Prevention Fund.
Who is the main contact?
Dr. Severin Haug
severin.haug@isgf.uzh.ch
Contact information
Scientific
Konradstrasse 32
Zurich
8031
Switzerland
| Phone | +41 (0)44 448 11 74 |
|---|---|
| severin.haug@isgf.uzh.ch |
Study information
| Study design | Cluster randomised controlled trial |
|---|---|
| Primary study design | Interventional |
| Secondary study design | Randomised controlled trial |
| Study setting(s) | Other |
| Study type | Treatment |
| Participant information sheet | Not available in web format, please use the contact details below to request a participant information sheet |
| Scientific title | Efficacy of an individualised smoking cessation intervention in adolescents and young adults provided by text messaging: a cluster randomised controlled trial |
| Study acronym | SMS-COACH |
| Study objectives | Smokers receiving a text messaging based smoking cessation intervention will show higher rates of smoking abstinence at follow-up than smokers of an assessment only control group |
| Ethics approval(s) | Local Ethics Committee of the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland approved on 15th March 2011, KEK-StV-Nr. 05/11 |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Tobacco smoking cessation |
| Intervention | Intervention group: 1. Online baseline assessment of demographic data and smoking behaviour 2. Online baseline assessment of pros and cons of smoking and strategies to resist smoking 3. Individualised text messages to support smoking cessation (2 text messages per week for a period of 3 months) 4. Possibility to register for a more intensive program providing strategies for smoking cessation around a self-defined quit date (2 text messages per day for a period of 4 weeks) Assessment only control group: Online baseline assessment of demographic data and smoking behaviour |
| Intervention type | Other |
| Primary outcome measure | 7-day point prevalence smoking abstinence assessed at follow-up at 6 months |
| Secondary outcome measures | All secondary outcome measures will be assessed at the 6-months follow up. 1. 30-day point prevalence smoking abstinence 2. Nicotine dependence assessed by the Heaviness of Smoking Index 3. Self-efficacy for smoking cessation 4. Quit attempt in the previous 6 months |
| Overall study start date | 01/09/2011 |
| Completion date | 31/01/2013 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Patient |
|---|---|
| Age group | Adult |
| Sex | Both |
| Target number of participants | N=910 (intervention group: n=455, assessment only control group: n=455). |
| Key inclusion criteria | 1. Male and female adolescents and young adults attending vocational or high schools (age 14-26) 2. Daily cigarette smoking or occasional cigarette smoking (at least 4 cigarettes in the previous month and at least one cigarette during the past week) 3. Ownership of an own mobile phone 4. Use of mobile phone text messaging |
| Key exclusion criteria | Does not meet inclusion criteria |
| Date of first enrolment | 01/09/2011 |
| Date of final enrolment | 31/01/2013 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- Switzerland
Study participating centre
8031
Switzerland
Sponsor information
Government
Bundesamt für Gesundheit BAG
Tabakpräventionsfonds
Bern
3003
Switzerland
| Website | http://www.bag.admin.ch |
|---|---|
"ROR" |
https://ror.org/01qtc5416 |
Funders
Funder type
Government
No information available
Results and Publications
| Intention to publish date | |
|---|---|
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | No |
| IPD sharing plan summary | Not provided at time of registration |
| Publication and dissemination plan | Not provided at time of registration |
| IPD sharing plan |
Study outputs
| Output type | Details | Date created | Date added | Peer reviewed? | Patient-facing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Results article | results | 16/08/2013 | Yes | No |
