A personalized, cellular phone text-messaging program increased smoking cessation at 6 months

Randomized controlled trial. Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN 80978588.

Concealed.*

Blinded (data collectors and outcome assessors).*

6 months.

UK.

5800 persons ≥ 16 years of age (mean age 37 y, 55% men), who smoked, were willing to attempt to quit smoking in the next month, and owned a cellular phone.

A cellular phone text-messaging smoking cessation program (txt2stop) (n = 2911) or control (n = 2881). Participants in the txt2stop group set a quit date within 2 weeks of randomization. They received 5 text messages per day for 5 weeks, then 3 per week for 26 weeks. The 186 core messages were motivational or provided behavior change techniques. Additional personalized messages (selected from a database of 713 messages) were based on demographic and other baseline information or were triggered by participant texts. The control group received simple, short text messages every 2 weeks on the importance of trial participation. Pay-as-you-go phone plan users were provided with £20 (approximately US $32 based on exchange rates 10 Aug 2011) vouchers.

Primary outcome was self-reported continuous smoking abstinence (≤ 5 cigarettes since start of abstinence), biochemically verified at 6 months using a postal salivary-cotinine test (cutpoint 7 ng/mL) or in-person carbon monoxide test (cutpoint 6 ppm). Secondary outcomes included self-reported vehicle crashes, repetitive strain injury in the thumb, and use of other smoking cessation services during the trial.

95% completed follow-up (intention-to-treat analysis). Of 666 participants who self-reported continuous abstinence at 6 months, 542 (81%) completed biochemical assessment, 50 (7.5%) self-reported relapsing, and 74 (11%) had no follow-up.