Nonsmoking after simultaneous alcohol abstinence and smoking cessation program was associated with better drinking status outcome in Japanese alcohol-dependent men: A prospective follow-up study

BACKGROUND: Growing evidence suggests that intervention for smoking cessation enhances alcohol abstinence in treatment settings for alcohol dependence. However, research in this field is rare in Asians. METHOD: We prospectively investigated the association of smoking status with drinking status using 9 surveys mailed during a 12-month period in 198 Japanese alcohol-dependent men (70 never/ex-smokers and 128 smokers) who admitted for the first time and completed a 3-month inpatient program for simultaneous alcohol abstinence and smoking cessation. RESULTS: Nonsmoking during the first month after discharge and at the end of follow-up was reported in 28.9% and 25.0% of the baseline smokers, respectively. Kaplan-Meier estimates showed that a 12-month alcohol abstinence and heavy-drinking-free status were more frequent among never/ex-smokers (45.1% and 59.8%, respectively) and baseline smokers who quit smoking during the first month after discharge (59.0% and 60.8%, respectively), compared with sustained smokers (30.0% and 41.2%, respectively). Among the baseline smokers, the multivariate odds ratio (95% confidence interval) for smoking cessation during the first month were 2.77 (1.01–7.61) for alcohol abstinence during the period and 2.50 (1.00–6.25) for use of varenicline, a smoking cessation agent, during the inpatient program. After adjusting for age, drinking profile, lifestyle, family history of heavy or problem drinking, lifetime episodes of other major psychiatric disorders, and medications at discharge, the multivariate hazard ratios (HRs) for drinking lapse were 0.57 (0.37–0.89) for the never/ex-smoking and 0.41 (0.23–0.75) for new smoking cessation groups, respectively, compared with sustained smoking, while the corresponding HRs for heavy-drinking lapse were 0.55 (0.33–0.90) and 0.47 (0.25–0.88), respectively. The HR for drinking lapse was 0.63 (0.42–0.95) for the nonsmoking group (vs. smoking) during the observation period, while the HR for heavy-drinking lapse was 0.58 (0.37–0.91) for the nonsmoking group (vs. smoking) during the observation period. Other significant variables that worsened drinking outcomes were higher daily alcohol intake prior to hospitalization, family history of heavy or problem drinking and psychiatric medications at discharge. CONCLUSION: Nonsmoking was associated with better outcomes on the drinking status of Japanese alcohol-dependent men, and a smoking cessation program may be recommended to be integrated into alcohol abstinence programs.