Hypnotherapy news - clinical study shows hyposis helps smokers quit

Posted April 2008

Smoking cesseation: Clinical study shows hypnotherapy more effective than NRT

Research in the United States has presented strong evidence that hypnotherapy may be best way to help hospital patients quit smoking.

A study conducted in Massachusetts found clinical hypnosis was more than three times more effective than nicotine replacement therapy (NRT).

The findings were present to the annual international scientific assembly of the American College of Chest Physisicians in 2007 which heard how a team from North Shore Medical Center, Salem and Massachusetts General Hospital provided smoking cessation for patients with heart and lung disease.

The outcome was that patients who smoked and took part in a single hypnotherapy session were – six months later – far more likely to still be non-smokers than other patients who had used nicotine replacement therapy alone or who had tried to quit "cold turkey".
	North Shore Medical Center, Salem

Another possibly significant finding was that patients admitted to the hospital with a cardiac condition were three times more likely to still be non-smokers at six months than those admitted with a pulmonary ailment.

The research was headed by Dr Faysal Hasan from North Shore Medical Center. He told the conference: "Our results showed that hypnotherapy resulted in higher quit rates compared with NRT alone. Hypnotherapy appears to be quite effective and a good modality to incorporate into a smoking cessation program after hospital discharge."

The Massachusetts study compared the cessation rates of 67 smoking patients diagnosed and admitted to hospital with heart or lung diseases.

Dr Faysal Hasan

Each patient was asked whether they wished to stop smoking and all those who said they wanted to quit were included in the study.

Patients were split into four groups based on their preferred method of smoking cessation treatment: Of those 14 opted for hypnotherapy alone, 19 chose nicotine replacement (NRT) while 18 went for a combination of hypnotherapy and NRT.

Sixteen patients who wished to try to quit "cold turkey" were assigned as the control group and received brief counselling.

Patients in the three other groups all received intensive counselling, free supply of NRT and/or a free hypnotherapy session within seven days of discharge. After that they received series of six follow-up telephone check-up calls spread over 26 weeks after discharge.

Patients receiving hypnotherapy also were taught self-hypnosis and given tapes to play at the end of the session.

Twenty-six weeks after discharge the proportions who remained non-smoker were as follows:

Hypnotherapy alone	= 50 %
Hypnotherapy & NRT	= 50 %
NRT alone	= 15.8 %
The Control Group	= 25 %

It was found that patients admitted with a heart disease were more likely to quit smoking at 26 weeks (45.5 %) than patients admitted with a lung conditions (15.63 %).

The explanation for that difference Dr Hasan suggested: "Patients admitted with coronary symptoms may have experienced 'fear and doom' and decided to alter a major health risk to their disease when approached about smoking cessation.

"In contrast, pulmonary patients admitted for another exacerbation may not have felt the same threat. They likely felt they can live for another day and continue the smoking habit."

The Massachusetts researchers felt being admitted to hospital offered an important opportunity to intervene among patients who smoked.

"Doctors and other health personnel should use this occasion to firmly recommend smoking cessation and emphasise the impact of smoking on their disease process and hospital admission," said Dr. Hasan.