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. 2017 Feb 14;2017(2):CD001055. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD001055.pub5

Solomon 2000.

Methods Randomised controlled trial of telephone peer support to help women stop smoking in pregnancy.
Study conducted in a large obstetric practice in Burlington, Vermont (USA), with recruitment from 1996 to 1997.
Participants Inclusion criteria: Women reporting smoking at least 1 cigarette in the past week at their first AN visit.
Exclusion criteria: Not further specified.
Recruitment: 151/186 (81%) women approached agreed to participate and were randomised (C = 74, I = 77).
Baseline characteristics: Mean cigarettes/day before pregnancy: C = 20.2, I = 22.6; Mean cigarettes per day at first visit: C = 9.8, I = 10.5. Mean exhaled CO: C = 11.3, I = 11.3. Mean other smokers in household: C = 1.5, I = 1.3.
Mean age C = 23.7, I = 23.1; Mean years education: C = 11.5, I = 11.7; White: C = 96%, I = 94.8%. Medicaid recipient: C = 74.6%, C = 77.5%.
Progress + coding: Low SES.
Interventions Control: Received brief smoking cessation advice (including encouraging a quit date) from a midwife or obstetrician at each of the 3 prenatal visits and stage‐appropriate printed materials. Midwives and obstetricians were provided with a 45‐min training session and protocol prompt sheets were placed in charts at first prenatal visits.
Intervention: Received the same as the control group, plus any women in the experimental visit who reported they possibly, probably or definitely intended to quit smoking were offered telephone peer support by the obstetrician/midwife. The telephone peer support was provided by a female ex‐smoker, who received 8 hours of training. The support person called the participant within several days of referral to provide support, encouragement and reinforcement of positive changes in smoking behaviour. Ongoing calls typically occurred on a weekly basis, but more frequently around a quit date. On average calls lasted 10 mins.
Main intervention strategy: Social support (tailored intervention) compared to a less intensive intervention.
Intensity: Frequency: (C = 3, I = 6), Duration (C = 1, I = 4).
Unclear whether intervention provided by dedicated or existing staff.
Outcomes Biochemically validated 7‐day point prevalence abstinence at 28‐34/40 gestation (late pregnancy*).
Proportion of self‐reported smoking reduction by more than 50%* was reported for a proportion (135 women) but unclear how many had dropped out of intervention and control groups. As report states 'no significant difference' in dropouts by intervention group (total n = 16) we have imputed 8 for each arm and calculated the number of reductions from a proportion of the remaining sample.
Movement in stages of change also reported for this group.
Notes  
Risk of bias
Bias Authors' judgement Support for judgement
Random sequence generation (selection bias) Unclear risk States participants were randomised into either experimental or control condition.
Allocation concealment (selection bias) Unclear risk No information.
Incomplete outcome data (attrition bias) 
 All outcomes Low risk 16/151 (11%) attrition at follow‐up. Unclear how many from each arm, so outcomes (> 50% reduction and SOC movement) reported as a proportion of those remaining were not able to be included. All randomised women were included in the primary outcome of smoking cessation, with those lost to follow‐up treated as continuing smokers.
Selective reporting (reporting bias) Unclear risk Only smoking outcomes reported.
Other bias Low risk No other bias detected.
Biochemical validation of smoking abstinence (detection bias) Low risk Urinary cotinine assessment at 28‐34 weeks used to confirm smoking status (cut‐off < 80 ng/mL).
Blinding of participants and personnel (performance bias) 
 All outcomes High risk Not feasible to blind participants and personnel to allocation. Medical charts flagged and referral for social support required by care providers.
Blinding of outcome assessment (detection bias) 
 All outcomes Unclear risk Not reported.
Incomplete implementation High risk Process evaluation showed 53% received the peer intervention. 9 (12%) had low intentions of quitting smoking during pregnancy and were never offered the peer support, 9 (12%) had no home telephone and were not referred, and 15 (19%) refused the offering, leaving 44 (57%) who were referred for peer support. Data from log sheets completed by the telephone support person revealed that 3 women referred were never reached; therefore, only 53% of the women in the experimental condition received the peer support intervention.
Equal baseline characteristics in study arms Low risk Baseline comparisons of women in the experimental and control conditions revealed no significant differences in demographics, pregnancy history, or smoking information.
Contamination of control group Low risk Unlikely telephone counselling would have been provided to control group in error.