Effectiveness of smoking cessation programs for seriously mentally ill

Abstract

Introduction. Many studies have supported the significant association between mental illness and smoking habit, with relative independence of socio-cultural factors. The aim of this study was to review effective strategies for smoking cessation of adults with major depression, schizophrenia and psychosis.

Material and methods. An extensive literature search was performed in Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, Center for Reviews and Dissemination, ECRI, clinicaltrials.gov, UK National Research Register, Current Controlled Trials, Trip Database, NLM Gateway, Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations (electronic theses and dissertations (ETDs)), TESEO, Dialnet, Lilacs, SciELO, EMI, Doyma, and Catalogue et Index des Sites Medical Francophones. We selected all systematic reviews, comprehensive reports, clinical trials, observational studies and recommendations, which had evaluated smoking cessation programs in patients with severe mental illness.

Results. Few studies focusing on smoking cessation in severe mental illness were found. In the treatment of smokers who suffer these mental disorders, it is recommended to increase and prolong the treatment period, to implement joint psychoeducation techniques, cognitive-behavioral techniques and the use of any drug treatment that helps to control and / or reduce the occurrence of relapses in tobacco consumption or baseline psychiatric symptoms. However, there is great heterogeneity in the recommendations given by the studies.

Conclusions. It remains unclear whether people with severe mental illness could benefit from access to smoking cessation treatments. In the best of the scenarios, it was seen that drug therapy and psychosocial interventions have indicated abstinence at 6 months for a few patients.