The Effectiveness of Cytisine for Smoking Cessation in a Clinic-based Setting at Phranangklao Hospital

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of cytisine for smoking cessation among patients in a public hospital’s smoking cessation clinic, comparing outcomes from self-report and biochemical verification with exhaled carbon monoxide (CO) levels.
Methods: This was a retrospective descriptive study involving 19 participants. The group was predominantly male (94.7%) with a mean age of 52.8±10.3 years. Participants had an average smoking history of 18.7±9.5 cigarettes per day for 33.8±9.7 years. Most patients (68.42%) had comorbidities, and 47.37% had high nicotine dependence. Outcomes were assessed at 8 weeks and 6 months using Intention-to-Treat (ITT) analysis, where participants lost to follow-up were classified as having failed to quit.
Results: At 8 weeks, the self-reported abstinence rate was 63.2%, and the CO-verified abstinence rate (CO≤6 ppm) was 42.1%. At the 6 month follow-up, the self-reported abstinence rate was 57.9%, while the CO-verified abstinence rate was 15.8%. One participant discontinued the medication due to adverse events.
Conclusions: Cytisine demonstrated satisfactory effectiveness for short-term smoking cessation, with some participants maintaining abstinence at 6 months. However, the significantly lower rate of long-term CO verification highlights the challenges of follow-up and outcome assessment in a real-world clinical setting.