Syrian smokers are less successful at quitting than smokers in developed countries. Only about 15% of smokers in Syria have quit.

One of the main objectives of the SCTS is to develop smoking cessation interventions tailored to the Syrian environment based on data from epidemiological and clinical laboratory research.

SCTS conducted a pilot randomised clinical trial to determine the feasibility and efficacy of a clinic-based intervention by testing two intensity levels of behavioural intervention. We randomised 50 smokers to either a brief or intensive hospital-based, free, behavioural counseling intervention. The results indicated that nicotine dependence is an important barrier to retention in smoking cessation trials in Syria.

Now SCTS is conducting a multicenter randomized clinical trial with 250 adult smokers recruited from three randomly selected government-supported primary care centres and one private diabetes clinic. All patients received behavioural counselling fro m a trained physician and were randomized to receive either nicotine patch or placebo patch.

The primary objectives of this study are:

(1) determine prevalence, knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs related to tobacco use among Syrian primary care physicians and patients.

(2) determine baseline and post-intervention tobacco use practices and policy implementation, as reported by both physicians and patients, in participating clinics.

(3) determine the efficacy of a combined behavioural/pharmacological smoking cessation intervention that can be feasibly implemented within Syrian primary care facilities.