Effectiveness of smoking cessation in a dentistry setting in Sweden – a randomized trial

Background: The aim of the present study was to assess the relative effectiveness of a high intensity intervention compared with a low intensity intervention for smoking cessation support in a dental clinic setting. Method: 300 smokers attending dental or general health care were randomly assigned to two arms and referred to the local dental clinic for smoking cessation support. One arm received support with low treatment intensity (LTI), whereas the other group was assigned to high treatment intensity (HTI) support. The main outcome measures included self-reported point prevalence and continuous abstinence (≥183 days) at the 12-month follow-up. Results: Follow-up questionnaires were returned from 86% of the participants. People in the HTI-arm were twice as likely to report continuous abstinence compared with the LTI-arm (18% vs. 9%, p=0.02). There was a small (not significant) difference between the arms in point prevalence abstinence in favour of the HTI-protocol (24% vs. 16%). However, point prevalence cessation rates in the LTI-arm reporting additional support were relatively high (23%) compared with available data assessing abstinence in smokers trying to quit without professional support. Conclusion: Screening for willingness to quit smoking within the health care system and offering smoking cessation support within dentistry may be an effective model for smoking cessation support in Sweden. The LTI approach is more cost-effective as a first treatment option, but should be integrated with other forms of available support in the community. The more extensive and expensive HTI-protocol should be offered to those unable to quit with the LTI approach. Trial registration number: NCT00670514