Can Smoking Cessation Improve Physiological Markers of Chronic Pain Risk in Native American Smokers?: A Pilot Feasibility Study
University of Oklahoma
Summary
The goal of this pilot study is to assess whether 4-weeks of verified smoking abstinence following financial incentive treatment for smoking cessation improves physiological markers of chronic pain risk in adult Native American smokers. The main aims to answer are: 1. Determine study feasibility. 2. Obtain effect sizes for changes in pain amplification and pain inhibition in abstinent vs non-abstinent Native Americans. 3. Obtain effect sizes for variables in the conceptual model of the Native American smoking-pain relationship.
Description
Native Americans experience the highest rates of chronic pain of all U.S. racial/ethnic groups, and we have shown this disparity is partly explained by disrupted physiological pain regulation mechanisms, i.e., enhanced pain amplification and impaired pain inhibition. One unexplored variable that could disrupt these mechanisms in Native Americans is non-ceremonial tobacco smoking. Native Americans have the highest smoking rate in the U.S., and smoking is associated with disrupted pain regulation in non-Native American samples. Thus, there is a critical need to understand whether smoking contrib…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria: * Self-identify as Native American/American Indian * Currently daily smoker * Own a smartphone with a data plan * Ability to speak and read English Exclusion Criteria: * \>18 years of age * Currently pregnant * Self-reported history of heart disease or heart attack * Angina, arrhythmias, hypertension, heart disease * Current chronic pain * Pepper allergy * Inability to speak English * Current psychosis (assessed by Psychosis Screening Questionnaire) * Serious cognitive impairment (assessed by \<20 score on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment \[MoCA\])
Interventions
- BehavioralSmoking Cessation
Investigators will provide financial incentives for biochemically verified abstinence at 4 weeks following treatment. This incentive is consistent with recent research using macro-level financial incentives and incorporates both short-term and long-term incentives to shape behavior.
Location
- University of Oklahoma - Schusterman CenterTulsa, Oklahoma