Rheumatologists influential in smoking cessation for patients with ankylosing spondylitis
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Key takeaways:
- Rheumatologists wield much influence in convincing patients with ankylosing spondylitis to quit smoking.
- Patients who quit often cited concerns related to their disease.
A rheumatologist’s decision to ask about tobacco use may potentially be the leading factor in whether a patient with ankylosing spondylitis quits smoking, according to data published in Cureus.
“Studies show that doctors’ smoking cessation advice is a powerful motivator to promote smoking cessation,” Mehmet Nur Kaya, MD, of Gülhane Training and Research Hospital, in Ankara, Turkey, and colleagues wrote. “To the best of our knowledge, there is no study showing the effect of rheumatologist advice on smoking cessation rates in AS patients.”
To investigate the impact of rheumatologists on the smoking habits of patients with AS, Kaya and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study at Gülhane Training and Research Hospital between March and June of 2022. Included patients were those aged older than 18 years who met AS diagnostic criteria, while patients who were pregnant, medically unstable or with missing information regarding smoking history were excluded.
Participants answered a 10- item questionnaire regarding smoking status and demographic information of interest, including age, sex, BMI, comorbidities, education level, marital status and disease duration. Patients were also asked about their age at disease onset and their alcohol use. Information of interest regarding smoking history included how long patients had been smoking, how many cigarettes they smoked per day, whether doctors advised them to quit, and cessation methods they had previously used.
The researchers defined cigarette consumption based on pack-years, identified as smoking 20 cigarettes per day for 1 year of cigarette consumption. The primary endpoint was whether a rheumatologist had asked about a patient’s smoking status, and whether the rheumatologist recommended quitting. Secondary endpoints included current smoking status and patient-reported factors that led to smoking cessation.
The study included a total of 308 patients, of whom 102 were defined as having quit smoking. Among the patients who quit, 38.3% did so following the recommendation of a rheumatologist. Additionally, 28.4% reported that they quit because of concerns relating to their AS diagnosis. According to the researchers, the most common methods patients used to quit smoking included “herbal supplements” and medications, each used in 39.2% of patients.
“Regardless of the reason for admission, every contact with the patient should be considered as an opportunity to combat the health risks posed by smoking,” Kaya and colleagues wrote. “In this sense, it is thought that rheumatologists’ questioning of smoking in AS patients and suggesting smoking cessation will contribute to disease control and long-term medical outcomes.”
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