[Use of adjuvant treatment options in tobacco and nicotine counseling: results of an anonymous survey].

Abstract

Counseling and treatment of tobacco and nicotine users include classical behavioral therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy methods. More than half of the quitters after an intervention relapsed into old behavior after 12 months. Discussions with experts have shown that evidence-based interventions are individually supplemented with treatment options without scientific evidence or with inconsistent efficacy. This study examined the use of adjuvant treatment options in the area of smoking cessation such as aromatherapy.The sample for our anonymous online survey (Sosci survey) consisted of 351 experts. All of them had registered with their contact data in a freely accessible database (https://www.anbieter-raucherberatung.de/anbieter.php). A total of 88 experts took part in the survey. Respondents were on average 53 years old, and 71% were female. They reported on average 14 years of experience in smoking cessation counseling. More than half of the participants (66.3%; n=57) had employed at least one adjuvant treatment option. Exercise (49.1%), hypnosis (34.5%) and acupuncture (27.3%) were mentioned most often.Adjuvant treatment options appear to be important in the counseling of tobacco and nicotine users and there should be more discussion on these options among experts. These should also considered in the development of curricula for counsellors on tobacco and nicotine cessation.