Mobile Chat Messaging for Smoking Relapse Prevention

November 4, 2023 updated by: Tzu Tsun Luk, The University of Hong Kong

Effectiveness of Mobile Chat Messaging for Preventing Relapse in Smokers Who Have Recently Quit Smoking: a Randomised Controlled Trial

Most smokers return to smoking (relapse) after making a quit attempt, but evidence of effective intervention to prevent relapse is scarce. Taking advantage of recent advances in mobile technologies, this study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a mobile chat messaging-based relapse prevention intervention in promoting successful quitting in people who recently quit smoking (recent abstainers) using a randomised controlled trial design.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Most smokers who made quit attempts and achieved short-term abstinence return to smoking (relapse) over time, even when aided by effective smoking cessation treatment. Since relapse mostly occurred in the first 4 weeks of abstinence, relapse prevention in the early phase of abstinence could potentially boost long-term abstinence. Several behavioural interventions for smoking relapse prevention have been proposed and tested in RCTs. Yet, a 2019 Cochrane review did not find traditional approaches, including self-help materials, telephone counselling and group therapy, effective in increasing long-term abstinence at 6 months or longer.

The widespread use of mobile devices has provided a highly accessible and scalable means for novel behavioural interventions for smoking cessation. A formative qualitative study in current smokers conducted by the investigators showed that mobile chat messaging is a feasible and acceptable platform for delivering smoking cessation support. A subsequent cluster randomised controlled trial on 1148 smokers found that mobile chat messaging combined with brief intervention was effective in increasing biochemically validated abstinence at 6 months. Nonetheless, whether mobile chat messaging could prevent relapse in recent abstainers has remained untested.

The investigators did a pilot trial to confirm the feasibility and acceptability of mobile chat messaging for relapse prevention in recent abstainers. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of mobile chat messaging relapse prevention intervention in promoting abstinence in recent abstainers.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

586

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

  • Name: Tzu Tsun Luk, PhD, RN
  • Phone Number: 39177574
  • Email: lukkevin@hku.hk

Study Locations

  • Hong Kong
      • Hong Kong, Hong Kong
        • Recruiting
        • Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Integrated Centre on Smoking Cessation
        • Contact:
          • Nga Ting Grace Wong
          • Phone Number: 2332 8977
      • Hong Kong, Hong Kong
        • Recruiting
        • United Christian Nethersole Community Health Service Smoking Cessation Programme
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Hong Kong residents aged 18 years or above
  • Own a smartphone with WhatsApp installed
  • Enrolled in a smoking cessation program under Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Integrated Centre on Smoking Cessation
  • Smoked daily before the present quit attempt
  • Abstained from smoking for 3 to 30 days

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Diagnosed with a mental disease or on regular psychotropic drugs
  • Participating in other ongoing smoking cessation studies

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Mobile chat messaging
Standard smoking cessation treatment + Personalised chat messaging
Behavioral: Standard smoking cessation treatment
Standard smoking cessation treatment (behavioural and pharmacotherapy) provided by Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Integrated Centre on Smoking Cessation
Behavioral: Personalised chat messaging
Personalised chat messaging focusing on smoking relapse prevention for 3 months from randomisation. A trained counsellor will interact with a participant individually and provide relapse prevention advice via WhatsApp. The participant can also access a supportive chatbot in WhatsApp, which will provide on-demand smoking relapse prevention support when the counsellor is not available (e.g., during nighttime).
Active Comparator: SMS messaging
Standard smoking cessation treatment + Regular SMS text messaging generic information about the harms of smoking and the benefits of quitting
Behavioral: Standard smoking cessation treatment
Standard smoking cessation treatment (behavioural and pharmacotherapy) provided by Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Integrated Centre on Smoking Cessation
Behavioral: SMS text messaging
SMS text messaging on generic information about the harms of smoking and the benefits of quitting for 3 months from randomisation.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Biochemically validated tobacco abstinence
Time Frame: 6 months after randomisation
Verified by an exhaled carbon monoxide level of lower than 5 parts per million or a negative salivary cotinine test
6 months after randomisation

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Self-reported 6-month prolonged tobacco abstinence
Time Frame: 6 months after randomisation
Not more than five lapses permitted for 6 months after baseline
6 months after randomisation
Self-reported 7-day point prevalent tobacco abstinence
Time Frame: 3 months after randomisation
Being completely smoke-free in the past 7 days
3 months after randomisation
Self-reported 7-day point prevalent tobacco abstinence
Time Frame: 6 months after randomisation
Being completely smoke-free in the past 7 days
6 months after randomisation
Self-reported relapse rate
Time Frame: 3 months after randomisation
Defined as use of tobacco products for 7 consecutive days or longer
3 months after randomisation
Self-reported relapse rate
Time Frame: 6 months after randomisation
Defined as use of tobacco products for 7 consecutive days or longer
6 months after randomisation

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

The University of Hong Kong

Collaborators

Health and Medical Research Fund
Tung Wah Group of Hospitals Integrated Centre on Smoking Cessation
United Christian Nethersole Community Health Service Smoking Cessation Programme

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Tzu Tsun Luk, PhD, RN, The University of Hong Kong

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

March 14, 2023

Primary Completion (Estimated)

October 31, 2024

Study Completion (Estimated)

January 31, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 6, 2022

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 6, 2022

First Posted (Actual)

May 11, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

November 8, 2023

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

November 4, 2023

Last Verified

November 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 19201341

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Request to obtain IPD can be made to the principal invesitgator on reasonable request

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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