People with recurrent depression are much less likely to be able to effectively quit smoking, according to a study conducted by Laurie Zawertailo, Ph.D., and her associates.
Participants were interviewed 6 months after receiving an intervention. In a secondary analysis of data, Dr. Zawertailo and her colleagues found that those with recurrent depression reported trying to quit six or more times in the past. When variables known to be tied to quit success such as age and socioeconomic indicators were entered into a regression model, the investigators found that recurrent depression was the only factor that remained a significant predictor of abstinence at 6 months. Depression diagnoses were self-reported and not confirmed by validated scales or interviews.
“These findings indicate that depression status should be assessed prior to initiating treatment for smoking cessation and treatment should be tailored to provide additional support through counseling and/or pharmacotherapy,” the investigators concluded.Find the full study in Psychiatry Research (doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2014.12.027).
