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Biomedical subjects

J K Bobo

Publications and source records attributed to J K Bobo.

31 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Response bias associated with asking former study participants to assist in new research.

To limit research costs, former parent-participants from a completed pediatric neurology study were asked to assist with new research on behavioral contributors to childhood injury. An evaluation of the response bias associated with this recontact effort showed that 224 parents who completed the survey did not differ from the 51 who failed to complete it in race, age, education, or income. Nonresponders were significantly less likely to be married than responders.

Cross-Sectional Studies↗

Cigarette smoking cessation attempts by recovering alcoholics.

Survey data on the smoking cessation experiences of 77 recovering alcoholics are reported. A comparison of successful and unsuccessful quitters addressed questions about optimal timing of cessation efforts, relative severity of alcohol and tobacco abuse histories, and the impact of cessation efforts on the maintenance of sobriety. Findings suggest that recovering alcoholics can successfully quit smoking without jeopardizing sobriety but that individuals with more severe substance abuse histories may be less successful. Although successful quitters tended to wait longer before attempting cessation, a comparison of the two groups was not statistically significant.

Adult↗

Self-control skills for preventing smoking.

This study evaluated the effects of self-control skills intervention to prevent smoking with middle school subjects. Informed and consenting subjects were pretested, then by school were randomly divided into three conditions: experimental, placebo, and test-only control. Experimental condition subjects received self-control skills intervention covering self-instruction, self-reinforcement, problem solving, and interpersonal communication. Placebo condition subjects received a discussion-oriented intervention employing health education methods to prevent smoking. Results at 15-month follow-up indicated that self-control and placebo condition subjects, relative to control condition subjects, improved more on measures of health knowledge and nonsmoking intentions. Self-control skills subjects had better 15-month follow-up scores than subjects in the other two conditions on measures of communication, self-instruction, self-praise, cigarette refusals, and noncompliance to smoke. Self-control condition subjects reported less weekly cigarette smoking compared with placebo and control condition subjects at final follow-up.

Child↗

The double triumph: sustained sobriety and successful cigarette smoking cessation.

Conventional practice wisdom has long shielded alcohol treatment center clients from social and medical pressures to quit smoking. But, recent findings of increased cancer risk are forcing a re-examination of traditional practices. Detailed case histories of 14 recovering alcoholics who successfully quit smoking suggest the feasibility of cessation efforts even in the face of severe substance abuse histories.

Adult↗

Skills methods to prevent smoking.

School health educators have devoted much attention to cigarette smoking. Recent years have seen the testing of interventions to prevent smoking. To date, controlled studies have not evaluated the added value of skills methods for preventing smoking. This article describes such an evaluation with sixth-grade students from two schools. Subjects were pretested and randomly assigned to receive conventional health education methods or to receive skills intervention. Both conditions included films, peer testimonials, discussions, and homework. Health education condition subjects additionally participated in oral quizzes, games, and debates. Skills condition subjects additionally learned problem-solving, self-instruction, and interpersonal communication methods. At postintervention, skills condition subjects, more than health education condition subjects, had better scores on measures of smoking-related knowledge, attitudes, and intentions. In addition, reported cigarette use, validated by biochemical data collection, was lower in the skills condition than in the health education condition at all postintervention measurements, including a 24-month follow-up. The article discusses the strengths, limits, and implications of the study for other smoking prevention efforts in schools.

Behavior Therapy↗

Urging the alcoholic client to quit smoking cigarettes.

Cigarette smoking is highly correlated with alcohol abuse. Yet information regarding smoking cessation for alcoholics is largely absent. To begin addressing this gap, 311 alcohol treatment professionals staffing 23 inpatient facilities in Washington state reviewed a list of 8 different time points, including "never," at which an alcohol-involved adult could be urged to quit smoking cigarettes. Respondents first selected those time points at which they favored and then those at which they personally encouraged smoking cessation. One year after the onset of sobriety emerged as the preferred time point. Responses were analyzed according to the treatment staff's self-reported alcohol and smoking status. Staff who described themselves as alcoholics and smokers were significantly less likely than nonalcoholic-nonsmokers to urge smoking cessation efforts.

Alcoholism↗

Alcohol and tobacco use in the Minnesota Heart Health Program.

Correlations between alcohol intake and cigarette smoking have been extensively documented. Prospective data on the relationship between smoking and alcohol remain quite limited. The Minnesota Heart Health Program (MHHP) collected such data as part of a 10-year research and demonstration project intended to reduce the prevalence of heart disease. The study involved six communities, three that received intervention and three, comparison. The current analyses focused upon baseline relationships and longitudinal changes in alcohol and tobacco use. Contrary to prediction, those who quit smoking were no more likely than continuing smokers to reduce alcohol intake. Furthermore, alcohol intake at baseline did not predict smoking status at follow-up. Gender differences were found in a number of comparisons. Further study is needed of changes in smoking and drinking patterns over time in the general population.

Adult↗

Training chemical dependency counselors to treat nicotine dependence.

To test the effectiveness of providing chemical dependency (CD) staff with a knowledge-and-skills-building workshop on treatment of nicotine dependence, we employed a nested cross-sectional design with six outpatient CD programs in Nebraska (3 intervention, 3 control sites). Data on tobacco counseling provided by CD staff were obtained by telephone from sequential samples of smokers currently receiving alcohol treatment at each participating site. Intervention site clients with clinic visits after the staff training workshop were no more likely than intervention-site clients with clinic visits before the workshop to report having been counseled about their smoking (OR = 0.95, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.74-1.21). However, control-site clients were significantly more likely to report having been counseled about smoking during the second half of the study (OR = 2.15, 95% CI: 1.49-3.08), even though staff training was not provided at control sites until data collection had been completed. These findings suggest that in some alcohol treatment programs simple monitoring of staff counseling practices may be sufficient to increase the frequency of attention to tobacco. In others, more intensive efforts might be needed to shift CD staff toward more consistent treatment of nicotine dependence.

Adult↗

Recovering staff and smoking in chemical dependency programs in rural Nebraska.

The problem of cigarette smoking among those who are recovering from alcohol dependence is becoming more apparent as chemical dependency units (CDUs) are beginning to restrict smoking for clients and staff and more actively encourage nicotine abstinence. To date, little is known about effective smoking cessation techniques for people with a history of alcohol problems. To obtain new data, a survey of personal experiences with smoking cessation and professional recommendations about nicotine dependence was administered to 124 recovering treatment professionals in CDUs in rural Nebraska. Among the 99 staff with a history of smoking, 81 (80%) had tried to quit smoking and 38 were former smokers at the time of the survey. Quitting "cold turkey" was the most popular smoking cessation method. Reliance on AA principles was second. The results suggest that recovering staff can successfully quit smoking by applying their professional practice guidelines for alcohol treatment to their personal problems with tobacco.

Adult↗

Feasibility of smoking cessation counseling by phone with alcohol treatment center graduates.

Several studies have tested the effectiveness of telephone counseling as a smoking cessation intervention, but few have addressed its application with the special population of smokers who are also problem drinkers or recovering alcoholics. Two hundred and eighty-eight male and female subjects were recruited from six residential alcohol treatment programs in Nebraska, Iowa, and Kansas to receive three postreatment telephone calls based on the stages of change model. Most subjects (71%) participated in at least one telephone counseling session, but only 38% participated in all three. Those who completed of session were significantly (p < .01) more likely to have advanced one stage of change in their readiness to quit smoking and to report having quit smoking for at least 24 hours since leaving treatment (p < .01). Stage-based telephone counseling appears to be a feasible approach to addressing smoking cessation among recovering alcoholics, with a modest positive effect on subsequent tobacco use.

Adolescent↗

Nicotine dependence and alcoholism epidemiology and treatment.

Nicotine dependence in alcohol-involved adults is a long-ignored treatment problem. The absence of its discussion in the literature is difficult to defend in light of medical and epidemiological data on the cost and prevalence of this dual addiction. Most descriptive studies of alcohol abusers published in the past 20 years have reported tobacco use rates of at least 90%. There is a crucial need to educate treatment professionals and their clients about the additional health risks associated with joint nicotine dependence and alcoholism. Historically, certain barriers to active intervention have existed in drug abuse treatment facilities, including (1) concerns that urging clients to quit smoking might have an adverse effect on their maintenance of sobriety, (2) a tendency to minimize the strength and severity of nicotine addiction, (3) a lack of informative data on how best to treat smoking in recovering alcoholics, and (4) financial issues related to marketing and insurance compensation. Recent data obtained from recovering alcoholics who have tried to quit smoking and anecdotal reports from alcoholism treatment centers that have begun addressing nicotine addiction are now challenging these barriers. Education, role modeling, environmental control, and development of staff expertise can be incorporated into standard alcoholism treatment programs to jointly treat these paired addictions.

Alcoholism↗

Nicotine dependence and alcoholism epidemiology and treatment.

Nicotine dependence in alcohol-involved adults is a long-ignored treatment problem. The absence of its discussion in the literature is difficult to defend in light of medical and epidemiological data on the cost and prevalence of this dual addition. Most descriptive studies of alcohol abusers published in the past 20 years have reported tobacco use rates of at least 90%. There is a crucial need to educate treatment professionals and their clients about the additional health risks associated with joint nicotine dependence and alcoholism. Historically, certain barriers to active intervention have existed in drug abuse treatment facilities, including (1) concerns that urging clients to quit smoking might have an adverse effect on their maintenance of sobriety, (2) a tendency to minimize the strength and severity of nicotine addition, (3) a lack of informative data on how best to treat smoking in recovering alcoholics, and (4) financial issues related to marketing and insurance compensation. Recent data obtained from recovering alcoholics who have tried to quit smoking and anecdotal reports from alcoholism treatment centers that have begun addressing nicotine addiction are now challenging these barriers. Education, role modeling, environmental control, and development of staff expertise can be incorporated into standard alcoholism treatment programs to jointly treat these paired addictions.

Alcoholism↗