| Summary: | Introduction
Smoking is the leading preventable cause of death and illness globally.
There is conflicting evidence regarding the association between quitting rates and
partners’ smoking status. It is thought that spouses influence one another’s health
habits, including smoking. This study aims to evaluate this association in patients
who made a smoking cessation attempt with pharmacotherapy.
Methods
For this Israeli nationwide retrospective cohort study, we randomly
selected patients who filled a prescription for varenicline as part of their smoking
cessation process and were partnered. The participants were asked to complete a
questionnaire 26–52 weeks after the first varenicline purchase. The independent
variables were the partner’s smoking status at the beginning of the smoking
cessation process and while answering the questionnaire. The outcome was a
success in the quitting process.
Results
In all, 226 (50%) participants had partners who smoked at the beginning
of the quitting process, and 230 (50%) had non-smoking partners; 178 (39%)
participants reported successful smoking cessation. There was a significant
difference in success rates depending on partners’ smoking status at the end of
the process, with success rates of 39% with a non-smoking partner, 76% with a
partner who also stopped smoking, and 31% with a partner who continued smoking
(p<0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that having a partner who stopped
smoking during the quitting process was associated with higher odds of quitting
compared with having a non-smoking partner (OR=4.73; 95% CI: 1.86–12.05).
Conclusions
This study showed that both partners quitting was associated with
increased odds of successful quitting. Health providers should make efforts to
engage both partners in smoking cessation.
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