An Internet treatment with weekly e-mail contacts used in a tobacco unit: clinical utility and predictors of outcome

This work presents preliminary data on the clinical utility and outcome predictors of The San Francisco Stop Smoking Internet Site (SFSSIS) (Lenert et al., 2003) used with weekly e-mail contacts and the usual pharmacological treatment. Fifty smokers participated in the current series of cases, 24 males and 26 females, with an age average of 43.24 (SD=10.24) years old. Thirty-two of the participants started the treatment. The abstinence rate in the post-treatment is 78.1% and in the one year follow-up 53.1%. The best outcome predictor in the post-treatment is the Beck Depression Inventory score (R2= 0.46, β= 0.51, p< 0.05), however in the one year follow-up the predictors are the carbon monoxide test (β1= 0.39, p< 0.05) and the age at time of starting to smoke (R2= 0.60, β2= 0.43, p< 0.05). It is important to emphasize that the participants were motivated to start the treatment and satisfied with it at the end. These preliminary results support the clinical utility of the SFSSIS for giving up smoking.