Efficacy of a smoking‐cessation intervention for elective‐surgical patients

We tested an intervention to help smokers abstain (fast) from smoking before surgery, maintain abstinence postoperatively, and achieve long‐term cessation. A randomized experiment included 237 patients admitted for presurgical assessment who smoked. The intervention included counseling and nicotine replacement therapy. Treatment group participants (73.0%) were more likely to fast than were controls (53.0%): χ 2 (1, N  = 228) = 8.89, p  = .003, and more likely to be abstinent 6 months after surgery (31.2% vs. 20.2%). There was no significant difference in the abstinence rates at 12 months after surgery, χ 2 (1, N  = 169) <.001, p  = 1.00. Encouraging patients to fast from smoking before surgery and postoperative support are efficacious ways to reduce preoperative and immediate post‐operative tobacco use. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Res Nurs Health 27:148–161, 2004