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Smoking cessation 1 year poststroke and damage to the insular cortex
Rosa Suñer-Soler1, Armando Grau, Maria Eugenia Gras
1Department of Psychology, Quality of Life Research Institute, Girona University, Girona, Spain. rosa.sunyer@udg.edu
Stroke
|November 5, 2011
Summary
Smoking cessation after stroke is challenging, with only 40% of patients remaining smoke-free at one year. Insular cortex damage and prior intent to quit significantly improve cessation rates in stroke survivors.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Public Health
- Addiction Medicine
Background:
- Hospitalization for stroke presents a critical, yet often missed, opportunity for smoking cessation.
- Understanding factors influencing sustained smoking cessation post-stroke is crucial for public health interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify sociodemographic, psychological, and lesion-related factors associated with smoking cessation in patients during the first year after stroke.
Main Methods:
- A prospective longitudinal study followed 110 acute stroke patients who were smokers at diagnosis.
- Data collection included a 1-year follow-up to assess smoking cessation status.
Main Results:
- While 69.1% quit upon hospital release, only 40% remained non-smokers at 1 year.
- Lesions in the insular cortex (OR, 5.42) and a pre-stroke intention to quit (OR, 7.29) were strongly associated with sustained cessation.
- 70.3% of patients with insular cortex lesions were non-smokers at 1 year.
Conclusions:
- Sustained smoking cessation 1 year after stroke is achieved by only 40% of patients.
- Insular cortex damage and a prestroke intention to quit are the strongest predictors of successful smoking cessation in stroke survivors.
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