Clinical Pharmacology & Biopharmaceutics
Open Access

Abstract

Introduction: This study aimed to determine the effects of smoking cessation in asthmatic patients, with regards to pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic interventions. Smoking is associated with a higher incidence of asthma and is strongly predictive of the development of new-onset asthma in allergic adults. Compared to nonsmoking asthmatic patients, smoking asthmatic patients are at risk of more severe symptoms and worse asthma-specific quality of life. There is a wide variety of approaches to smoking cessation from pharmacologic therapy to behavioral interventions. Design: A systematic review. Experimental: Only studies relating smoking cessation or smoking to asthma were included in this study. The following electronic databases, namely EBSCO Integrated Search, ScienceDirect and Scopus were used. For each trial, the following data were extracted using a standardized form: (1) year of publication; (2) comparisons studied; (3) study methods (setting, randomization, length of follow-up); (4) study population (number randomized and diagnostic criteria used); and (5) intervention(s). Results & Discussion: The results of this systematic review indicate that both pharmacologic and behavioral interventions are effective in smoking cessation but the significant statistical difference between the two cannot be established. Conclusion: It seems more useful that pharmacological therapies supplement behavioral interventions in approaching patients who want to quit smoking. Overall smoking cessation has positive effects in improving the condition of asthmatic patients. Relevance to Clinical Practice: Pharmacologic interventions as well as behavioral interventions provide better outcomes for asthmatic patients who are smokers improve their chances of stopping successfully.

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