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May 8th, 2008
Reduction of smoking rates among teenagers can be achieved by training
more influential students in secondary schools to promote anti-smoking
messages in everyday conversations with their friends and peers,
according to an article released on May 9, 2008 in The Lancet.
A young person’s smoking habits are strongly associated with the
behaviors their friends perform and usually, this is attributed to peer
pressure. However, evidence suggests that peer selection, in which
young people tend to choose to associate with like-minded people who
engage in similar behaviors to themselves, is also a cause. Peer
influence itself is not solely destructive, and can be protective,
leading to efforts to harness its positive effects through peer
education.
To this end, Professor Rona Campbell, University of Bristol, UK, and
Professor Laurence Moore, Cardiff University, UK, and colleagues
performed A Stop Smoking in Schools Trial (ASSIST). The goals of ASSIST
were to spread and sustain new standards of non-smoking behavior in
students between 12 and 13 years old. Taking place in 59
schools across western England and Wales, it examined almost 11,000
students in this group. Of these, 29 schools, encompassing 5,372
students, were randomly assigned to the control group, and continued
their normal education related to smoking. The other 30 schools, with a
total of 5,358 students, were assigned to receive the ASSIST training
program in addition to their normal education.
Follow up data were collected at three points: immediately after the
intervention, and after one and two years. The outcomes measured were
the instances of smoking in the previous week, specifically in the
school graduation year group and in a separate group of student
identified at the start of the study as occasional, experimental, or
ex-smokers and therefore at high risk of becoming regular smokers.
Saliva samples were analyzed and self reporting was also used to
determine whether the young person had participated in smoking.
The ASSIST training program itself took place in several phases. First,
young people nominated influential students in their year of school,
and the most prevalent nominees were invited to attend a recruitment
meeting. At this meeting, the role of a peer supporter was described,
and both their consent and their parents’ consent was requested.
Smokers were told that they could train to be peer supporters under the
condition that they sought to give up smoking themselves. The training
event lasted two days, was held outside of school, and used external
trainers. In it, peer supporters were educated about the risks of
smoking, economic benefits they might have if they stopped,
communication skills, group work, negotiation, conflict resolution,
sensitivity to others, personal values, and factors for building
confidence and self esteem.
Four subsequent school-based sessions were further performed to
additionally support their education through the study. In the ten week
period following training, peer supporters were asked to have
conversations with other students in their graduation year group about
the various benefits of abstaining from smoking. These conversations,
combined with their complimentary behavior, was meant to encourage
other young people not to smoke and therefore reduce smoking uptake.
Students in the intervention group were 25% less likely to take up
regular smoking than those in the control group in the initial period,
after ASSIST intervention had been run in their school. They were 23%
less likely to start regular smoking after one year and 15% less likely
after two years. The high risk group, profiled separately, showed
similar trends, and were 21% less likely to start immediately, 23% less
likely to start after one year, and 15% less likely after two years.
Overall, modeling the data from all follow-ups, students in the
intervention group had a 22% reduced chance of becoming smokers than
the control group.
On the basis of this data, which encompassed two years, it is estimated
that, if implemented, it could result in a 3% difference in smoking
prevalence in the 14-15 year age group. If implemented through the
entire UK, the researchers esimate that the reduction in 14-15 year old
students taking up smoking could be about 43,000 each year.
The authors say that this is a promising result for this approach of
smoking prevention: “Our study has shown that the ASSIST training
programme was effective in achievement of a sustained reduction in
uptake of regular smoking in adolescents for 2 years after its
delivery. Furthermore, it was well received by both students and staff.
Confidence in the robustness of this finding is enhanced by the very
high response rates achieved (over 90%), the retention of all schools
for the duration of the trial, the diversity of the schools
involved, and the concurrence of self-reported smoking data with saliva
testing.” Then, they highlight that by preventing smoking, many of the
diseases caused by smoking are also avoided. Combined with the trend
that middle-class people are more successful at quitting than poorer
people, they conclude: “Therefore, increasing resources to prevention
in adolescence rather than entirely focusing on cessation could to help
to avoid further widening health inequalities.”
Dr Robin Mermelstein, Institute for Health Research and Policy,
University of Illinois at Chicago, IL, USA, contributed an accompanying
comment in which she says that the progressive weakening of ASSIST over
time argues for some modifications to the system, including a yearly
renomination of peer supporters. Additionally, she notes the need to
focus on smoking cessation, and on other factors that could influence
youth smoking in addition to peer influence.
An informal school-based peer-led intervention for smoking prevention
in adolescence (ASSIST): a cluster randomised trial
R Campbell, F Starkey, J Holliday, S Audrey, M Bloor, N Parry-Langdon,
R Hughes, L Moore
Lancet 2008; 371: 1595-1602
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Written by Anna Sophia McKenney
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today
May 7th, 2008
Yesterday the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published an update to its 1996 Public Health Service Clinical Practice Guideline, Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence, which contains revised and improved recommendations to providers and clinicians so that they can better assist smokers in quitting. The guideline also confirms that there has never been a better time for smokers to quit than right now.
With the release of these new guidelines, smokers can receive improved strategies from physicians and other health care providers to help successfully quit smoking. The guidelines definitively state that combining FDA-approved pharmacotherapies and counseling is the most effective way for smokers to end addiction to tobacco products. The Public Health Service also finds that cessation treatments are cost-effective and that providing these treatments through healthcare systems will increase the number of people who seek treatment for smoking, attempt to quit and successfully quit.
“These new guidelines underscore how important it is for smokers to receive assistance quitting,” said Bernadette Toomey, President and CEO, of the American Lung Association. “The American Lung Association stands ready to help smokers quit through our different smoking cessation programs and resources.”
For more than 25 years, the Lung Association has offered Freedom from Smoking ® - the gold standard in smoking cessation. Freedom from Smoking ® and its online companion, Freedom from Smoking Online ®, have been proven effective to help smokers quit. Not-On-Tobacco (N-O-T), which is intended for regular smokers aged 14-19 who want to quit, is the only smoking cessation program of its kind to be named a “Model Program” by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Finally, the American Lung Association’s Helpline (1-800-LUNG-USA) is staffed by registered nurses and registered respiratory therapists with extensive experience in helping smokers quit. All of the American Lung Association’s cessation programs and services utilize the Public Health Services’ guideline.
The updated guidelines also make clear that recommended treatments for tobacco use should be covered by public and private health benefit plans. This is particularly true for smokers enrolled in Medicaid, who smoke at rates sixty percent higher than the national average. Nationwide, 34.8 percent of the Medicaid population smokes - compared to 20.8 percent of the general population - which translates into almost $34 billion annually in Medicaid costs directly attributable to smoking.
“Federal and state leaders must do their part in helping Medicaid recipients and others disproportionately affected by tobacco use to end their addiction to these deadly products,” Toomey emphasized. “Tobacco is the number one preventable cause of death in the United States - policy change, including cessation coverage for all Medicaid recipients, is urgently needed to end this epidemic.”
Just yesterday, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) released a study demonstrating the health benefits to women who quit smoking. The study found that quitting smoking helps women reduce the risk of heart and lung diseases, lung cancer and other cancers.
About the American Lung Association
Beginning our second century, the American Lung Association is the leading organization working to prevent lung disease and promote lung health. Lung disease death rates continue to increase while other leading causes of death have declined. The American Lung Association funds vital research on the causes of and treatments for lung disease. With the generous support of the public, the American Lung Association is “Improving life, one breath at a time.” For more information about the American Lung Association or to support the work it does, call 1-800-LUNG-USA (1-800-586-4872) or log on to http://www.lungusa.org.
American Lung Association
May 7th, 2008
An updated clinical practice guideline released by the U.S. Public Health Service has identified new counseling and medication treatments that are effective for helping people quit smoking. In addition, the May 7 issue of JAMA includes a commentary that urges clinicians to use the updated guideline to accelerate progress in reducing the use of tobacco.
Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence: 2008 Update was developed by a 24-member, private-sector panel of leading national tobacco treatment experts that reviewed more than 8,700 research articles published between 1975 and 2007. The review found that there are now seven medications approved by the Food and Drug Administration as smoking cessation treatments that dramatically increase the success of quitting. The medications are: bupropion SR, nicotine gum, nicotine inhaler, nicotine lozenge, nicotine nasal spray, nicotine patch, and varenicline.
The 2008 PHS guideline update also found evidence that counseling by itself or especially in conjunction with medication can greatly increase a person’s success in quitting. In particular, quitlines were found to be effective and can reach a large number of people; 1-800- QUIT-NOW, a national quitline, is an access number that connects people to their state-based quitline. It also provides broad access to cessation counseling for diverse populations and is easy for clinicians and patients to use.
“Decades after the hazards of smoking first gained national attention, tobacco use remains the leading preventable cause of illness and death in our society,” said Rear Admiral Steven K. Galson, M.D., M.P.H., Acting Surgeon General. “The good news is that we now have some of the best evidence-based treatments available for tobacco cessation.”
AHRQ Director Carolyn M. Clancy, M.D., added, “Use of tobacco remains discouragingly high among certain populations, such as people with limited education, low income, or who have psychiatric and substance use disorders. The 2008 PHS guideline update reinforces recommendations for making effective treatments available to smokers and other tobacco users,” she said.
A consortium of eight federal and private-sector, nonprofit organizations collaborated to sponsor the 2008 PHS guideline update. They are the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, which coordinated the update; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; the National Cancer Institute; the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; the National Institute on Drug Abuse; The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; the American Legacy Foundation; and the Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. In addition, more than 40 broad-based organizations have endorsed the guideline.
“Tobacco dependence is a chronic condition that often requires repeated intervention that can lead to long-term abstinence,” said Michael C. Fiore, M.D., guideline update panel chair and director of the Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. “I urge all clinicians to offer these effective treatments to smokers, no matter what their past success, and health care systems to make treatment a standard of care.”
Other recommendations issued in the 2008 PHS guideline update include the following:
- Clinicians, in their offices and in the hospital, should ask their patients if they smoke and offer counseling and other treatments to help them quit. According to AHRQ’s 2007 National Healthcare Quality Report, the percentage of hospitalized heart attack patients who were counseled to quit smoking has increased from 42.7 percent in 2000-2001 to 90.9 percent in 2005. Moreover, 48 States, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia all performed above 80 percent on this measure in 2005.
- If tobacco users are unwilling to make an attempt to quit, clinicians should use the motivational treatments that have been shown effective in promoting future attempts to quit.
- Individual, group and telephone counseling are effective, and their effectiveness increases with treatment intensity. Counseling should include two components: practical counseling and social support.
- Tobacco cessation treatments also are highly cost-effective relative to other clinical interventions. Providing coverage for these treatments increases quit rates. Insurers and purchasers should ensure that all insurance plans include the counseling and medication treatments that have been found to be effective in the 2008 PHS guideline update.
- Counseling treatments have been shown to be effective for adolescent smokers and are now recommended. Additional effective interventions and options for use with children, adolescents and young adults need to be determined.
American Medical Association President Ronald M. Davis, M.D., who supports the call to action for clinicians, stated: “With nearly half a million Americans dying from tobacco-related illness each year, what we do with today’s recommendations can help to dramatically reduce the estimated 5 million smokers who will die over the next decade if we don’t help treat them.”
The 2008 PHS guideline update and its companion products, which include a consumer guide and a pocket guide for clinicians, are available online here.
http://www.ahrq.gov
May 7th, 2008
Breaking the habit is hard to do. Recent findings from Mintel reveal that two-thirds of regular smokers have tried to quit and failed. Furthermore, nearly 40% of these smokers have tried to quit more than four times but failed every time.
“Everyone knows quitting smoking is tough,” comments Billy Hulkower, Senior Analyst at Mintel, “but many people don’t realize how hard it actually is. The majority of current smokers have tried to quit but they haven’t been successful. It’s a difficult battle and people have mixed views on the best methods and products to help them quit.”
Mintel found that the overwhelming majority of adults who successfully quit smoking (74%) said they did so by going cold turkey and just stopping the habit. Another 8% reported using nicotine replacement products such as the patch or gum to quit. Six percent successfully quit by slowing cutting back on cigarettes, and just 4% said they quit with the help of an oral prescription medication, according to Mintel.
“Our research points to cold turkey as the most successful way to quit smoking,” explains Hulkower, “but cold turkey is also smokers’ most commonly attempted method for quitting.” Mintel found that 81% of people who quit or attempted to quit tried going cold turkey. Only 21% attempted to quit using a nicotine patch, while only 16% tried nicotine gum.
“Manufacturers need to find new creative ways to get more people to try their nicotine replacement products. The market is definitely ripe for a smoking cessation product or method that helps people learn to live without cigarettes for the long term,” states Hulkower.
Nearly one in five Americans (28%) smokes cigarettes, despite health warnings, rising cigarette prices and local anti-smoking laws. Cigarettes and tobacco products accounted for over $103 billion in sales last year, while smoking cessation products only pulled in $536 million.
About Mintel
Mintel is a leading global supplier of consumer, product and media intelligence. For more than 35 years, Mintel has provided insight into key worldwide trends, offering unique data that directly impacts client success. With offices in Chicago, London, Belfast, Sydney, Shanghai and Tokyo, Mintel has forged a unique reputation as a world-renowned business brand.
http://www.mintel.com
May 7th, 2008
Nymox Pharmaceutical Corporation (NASDAQ: NYMX) offers TobacAlert™ Urine, an easy-to-use test for second-hand smoke exposure that requires no special equipment or training and can be used for at home or at the workplace. A new study has shown that even a brief exposure to second-hand smoke may hurt human blood vessels. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco found that healthy nonsmokers exposed to 30 minutes of second-hand smoke showed signs of blood vessel injury and impaired repair responses that persisted up to 24 hours after exposure, in a report published in the most recent issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (J Am Coll Cardiol. May 6, 2008; 51:1760-71).
“Second-hand smoke is insidious and exposure to second-hand smoke has serious short term and long term health consequences for children and adults alike,” said Brian Doyle, Nymox’s Senior Manager for Worldwide Sales and Marketing. “Parents who smoke may not realize the extent to which their habit is harming their children, even if their child’s exposure to second-hand smoke at home or in the car is relatively brief. Our TobacAlert™ Urine product gives concerned individuals a way of assessing the level of tobacco product use or exposure within a matter of minutes.”
Second-hand smoke poses a serious and pervasive health risk to children and adults according to the comprehensive 2006 report from the U.S. Surgeon General, The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke. The report highlighted how vulnerable children in particular are to second-hand smoke. Children exposed to secondhand smoke are at an increased risk for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), acute respiratory infections, ear problems, worsening of allergies and more severe asthma. The report also links second-hand smoke to coronary heart disease and lung cancer in adults and notes that even a brief exposure to second-hand smoke has immediate adverse effects on a person’s cardiovascular system.
TobacAlert™ can be used with either urine or saliva samples to provide an accurate visual read-out on a person’s tobacco use or exposure within minutes by measuring levels of cotinine, a by-product of the break-down of nicotine in the human body that the Surgeon General’s Report described as “the biomarker of choice for assessing secondhand smoke exposure.”
More information is available at http://www.tobacalert.com.
More information about Nymox is available at http://www.nymox.com.
This press release contains certain “forward-looking statements” as defined in the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and the actual results and future events could differ materially from management’s current expectations. The conduct of clinical trials and the development of drug and diagnostic products involve substantial risks and uncertainties and actual results may differ materially from expectations. Promising early results do not ensure that later stage or larger scale clinical trials will be successful or will proceed as expected. Such factors are detailed from time to time in Nymox’s filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory authorities.
http://www.nymox.com
May 7th, 2008
The American Academy
of Physician Assistants (AAPA), representing nearly 70,000 physician
assistants (PAs) practicing in the U.S., is pleased to join other national
organizations in endorsing the Public Health Service-sponsored guidelines
on Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence: 2008 Update.
“The updated tobacco cessation guidelines provide even stronger
evidence to support the efforts of physician assistants and other health
care professionals in treating tobacco use and dependence,” said AAPA
President Gregor F. Bennett, M.A., PA-C.
“AAPA encourages PAs in all specialties and all patient care settings
to provide effective tobacco cessation interventions to patients,” Bennett
added. “The new tobacco guidelines are appropriately focused on primary
care in the ambulatory setting, but they also identify specific patient
populations that would benefit from counseling and medication treatment in
all specialties and all settings.”
AAPA recognizes that many patient care visits to health care providers
occur outside of primary care practices in locations such as emergency
departments, specialty clinics, ambulatory surgical centers, and hospitals.
Tobacco users who receive most or all of their health care outside the
primary care setting may benefit the most from tobacco cessation
intervention.
Current research also indicates that tobacco cessation not only
prevents serious disease, but aids in the treatment of patients already
struggling with such conditions as cancer, HIV infection, diabetes, COPD,
and psychiatric disorders. Tobacco cessation decreases healing time and the
risk of infection after surgery. Treating pregnant women improves infant
birth-weight and reduces the risk of pre-term birth and sudden infant death
syndrome (SIDS).
A Physician Assistant Foundation-funded task force on tobacco cessation
in 2005 endorsed many of the same interventions recommended by the
PHS-sponsored tobacco guidelines. The common goal is that every patient who
uses tobacco is identified at every visit, advised to quit, and offered an
evidenced-based treatment. The task force suggested that PAs using the
“Ask-Advise-Refer” strategy can meet this goal in any patient care setting.
The role of the patient’s care provider, a PA or other clinician, in
advising the patient to quit is of foremost importance in increasing both
the likelihood and success of a quit attempt.
Physician assistants are licensed health professionals who practice
medicine as members of a team with their supervising physicians. PAs
deliver a broad range of medical and surgical services to diverse
populations in rural and urban settings. As part of their comprehensive
responsibilities, PAs conduct physical exams, diagnose and treat illnesses,
order and interpret tests, counsel on preventive health care, assist in
surgery, and prescribe medications.
AAPA is the only national organization to represent physician
assistants in all medical and surgical specialties. Founded in 1968, the
Academy works to promote quality, cost-effective health care and the
professional and personal growth of PAs. For more information about the
Academy and the PA profession, visit AAPA’s Web site, http://www.aapa.org.
American Academy of Physician Assistants
http://www.aapa.org
May 6th, 2008
Women who quit smoking significantly reduce risk of death from coronary heart disease within 5 years, but impact on risk of death from lung and other
cancers take longer.
These are the findings of Dr Stacey A Kenfield, of the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA, and colleagues in a new study published in the May 7th
issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, JAMA.
According to the World Health Organization, about 5 million deaths were smoking related in 2000, and estimates suggest that by 2030, this figure will rise to
10 million worldwide, 7 million of which will be in developing countries, wrote the authors, who also said that tobacco use is the leading cause of death in the
United States.
But while the link between smoking and increased risk of death from a range of diseases has been well established, the effect of quitting compared to
continuing to use tobacco has not.
Kenfield and colleagues examined data from the Nurses’ Health Study on over 100,000 women who were followed from 1980 to 2004. In this group there were
nearly 12,500 deaths, with nearly 4,500 among never smokers (36 per cent), 3,600 among current smokers (29 per cent) and just under 4,400 among past smokers
(35 per cent).
They calculated the relative risks (as hazard ratios) among the three subgroups of death from any cause, and from specific diseases such as cardiovascular,
respiratory, lung and other cancers, and other causes.
The results showed that:
- There was a 13 per cent reduction in the risk of death from any cause within the first 5 years of quitting compared to continuing to smoke.
- This risk reduced to the same level as the never smokers after 20 years of quitting.
- Within this overall 20 year figure some causes took less time to go down to the never smokers’ risk level and others took longer.
- Vascular disease showed the most rapid reduction in risk to the never smokers’ level, with much of it showing in the first 5 years of quitting.
- These included coronary heart disease (62 per cent of excess risk gone in first 5 years of quitting) and cerebrovascular disease (42 per cent of excess
risk gone in first 5 years of quitting).
- These figures were obtained from comparing the hazard ratios of recent quitters of less than 5 years with long term quitters of 20 years or
more.
- Death from respiratory diseases showed an 18 per cent reduction in risk of death 5 to 10 years after quitting, going down to the never smokers’ level
after 20 years.
- Risk of death from lung cancer showed a significant 21 per cent reduction in the first 5 years of quitting compared to continuing to smoke, but the
excess risk did not go away for 30 years.
- Past smokers who had quit for 20 but less than 30 years, had an 87 per cent reduction in risk of death from lung cancer compared to current smokers.
- When risk of death from other smoking-related cancers was included, this figures approached the never smokers’ risk level more than 20 years after
quitting.
- Risk of death from all causes, respiratory diseases, and smoking related cancers, was significantly higher among women who started smoking at a younger
age.
- The figures also showed smoking was linked to increased risk of death from colorectal cancer but not ovarian cancer.
- About 64 per cent of deaths among current smokers and 28 per cent among past smokers were linked to cigarette smoking.
The authors concluded that:
“Most of the excess risk of vascular mortality due to smoking in women may be eliminated rapidly upon cessation and within 20 years for lung
diseases.”
They added that:
“Postponing the age of smoking initiation reduces the risk of respiratory disease, lung cancer, and other smoking-related cancer deaths but has little effect
on other cause-specific mortality. These data suggest that smoking is associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer mortality but not ovarian cancer
mortality.”
The researchers emphasized the importance of maintaining school programs on preventing tobacco use and enforcing laws that deny young people access to
tobacco, given that early initiation is linked to higher risk of death. They also wrote that:
“Effectively communicating risks to smokers and helping them quit successfully should be an integral part of public health programs.”
“Smoking and Smoking Cessation in Relation to Mortality in Women.”
Stacey A. Kenfield; Meir J. Stampfer; Bernard A. Rosner; Graham A. Colditz
JAMA. 2008;299(17):2037-2047.
Vol. 299 No. 17, May 7, 2008
Cick here for Abstract.
Sources: JAMA press release and abstract.
Written by: Catharine Paddock, PhD
Copyright: Medical News Today
Not to be reproduced without permission of Medical News Today
May 6th, 2008
Targacept, Inc. (NASDAQ:TRGT), a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing a new class of drugs known as NNR Therapeutics (TM), announced the designation of a lead compound in its smoking cessation program, triggering a $500,000 milestone payment under its alliance agreement with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK).
“We are delighted to have successfully leveraged our expertise in NNRs to bring forward a novel compound for smoking cessation, an area that is not only a major healthcare need but also where application of the NNR mechanism has been validated commercially,” said J. Donald deBethizy, President and CEO of Targacept. “Emerging science has made the promise of NNR-targeted compounds as smoking cessation aids increasingly evident. It is important for a smoking cessation aid to specifically target the areas of the brain that serve as pathways for addiction, while addressing limitations of currently available products by minimizing unwanted side effects.”
Neuronal nicotinic receptors (NNRs) are a class of proteins in the nervous system that modulate the levels of key chemical messengers, such as dopamine. Nicotine’s addictive effects have been linked to over-stimulation of dopamine release in brain regions involved in feelings of reward and pleasure. Various NNR subtypes modulate dopamine release in these pathways and represent optimal targets for therapeutic intervention. Compounds that can normalize the activity of these NNR subtypes have the potential to decrease the rewarding effects of nicotine and, as a result, the desire to smoke.
In July 2007, Targacept and GSK entered into a strategic alliance pursuant to which Targacept would utilize its proprietary Pentad (TM) drug discovery technology to discover novel small molecule product candidates that target specified NNR subtypes in five therapeutic areas — pain, smoking cessation, addiction, obesity and Parkinson’s disease. GSK is participating in the alliance through its Center of Excellence for External Drug Discovery.
Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that tobacco use remains the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, causing approximately 438,000 premature deaths each year. Datamonitor projects that the global prescription market for smoking cessation therapies will be as much as $4.6 billion by 2016.
About Targacept
Targacept is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company that discovers and develops NNR Therapeutics (TM), a new class of drugs for the treatment of central nervous system diseases and disorders. Targacept’s product candidates selectively modulate neuronal nicotinic receptors that serve as key regulators of the nervous system to promote therapeutic effects and limit adverse side effects. Targacept has product candidates in development for Alzheimer’s disease, cognitive dysfunction in schizophrenia, pain and depression, as well as multiple preclinical programs. Targacept also has a cognition-focused collaboration with AstraZeneca and a strategic alliance with GlaxoSmithKline. Targacept’s news releases are available on its website at http://www.targacept.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements in this press release that are not purely historical in nature, including, without limitation, statements regarding the progress, timing or scope of the research and development of our product candidates, or related regulatory filings or clinical trials, the benefits that may be derived from NNR Therapeutics, the market for prescription smoking cessation therapies in the future, our plans, expectations, future operations, financial position, revenues, costs or expenses, constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements as a result of various important factors, including risks and uncertainties relating to: our ability to discover and develop product candidates under our alliance with GlaxoSmithKline; the results of clinical trials and non-clinical studies and assessments of product candidates in the programs subject to our alliance with GlaxoSmithKline, including the lead compound in our smoking cessation program; the conduct of such trials, studies and assessments, including the performance of third parties that we engage to execute them and difficulties or delays in the completion of patient enrollment or data analysis; the timing and success of submission, acceptance and approval of regulatory filings; changes in the prevalence of tobacco use; and the extent to which non-prescription smoking cessation therapies gain market acceptance. These and other risks and uncertainties that may impact actual results are described in greater detail under the heading “Risk Factors” in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and in other filings that we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission. As a result of the risks and uncertainties, the results or events indicated by the forward-looking statements may not occur. We caution you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statement. In addition, any forward-looking statements in this release represent our views only as of the date of this release and should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any subsequent date. We anticipate that subsequent events and developments may cause our views to change. Although we may elect to update these forward-looking statements publicly at some point in the future, we specifically disclaim any obligation to do so, except as required by applicable law.
Targacept
May 6th, 2008
Supporting the argument that smoke-free laws do not damage the hospitality industry, restaurants that ban cigarette smoking haven’t suffered from increased employee turnover, according to a new report published in the current online issue of Contemporary Economic Policy. The report , “Smoke-Free Laws and Employee Turnover,” was the first of its kind to examine the impact of smoke-free laws on the restaurant labor market.
“We already know from multitudes of other studies that going smoke-free doesn’t hurt business,” said Ellen Hahn, professor at the University of Kentucky College of Nursing. “But this is the first one to look at how smoke-free laws may impact employee retention and training.”
The study examined payroll records of a franchisee of a national full-service restaurant chain that operates 23 restaurants in the state of Arizona, a state where several communities have adopted smoke-free laws.
“We thought we might see a short term spike in turnover but we didn’t see that,” said Eric Thompson, associate professor with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
In fact, they found a decline in the probability of turnover in the initial months after a smoke-free law was implemented as well as evidence that turnover rates were lower 16 to18 months after implementation. However, over the long-run (a five year period) there was no consistent pattern of either a decline or an increase in employee turnover after the implementation of a smoke-free law.
By focusing on how a smoke-free policy impacted the restaurant workers’ interest or ability to stay on the job, the study supports existing evidence showing that smoke-free laws are positive for business.
“The reactions of the workers to the smoke-free laws showed that they weren’t apt to leave their jobs after their restaurants went smoke-free,” said Hahn.
Health advocates support local smoking ordinances as a public health strategy to enhance the safety of workplaces. But like many safety regulations, smoke-free laws have the potential to introduce economic inefficiencies. One earlier belief was that the introduction of a smoke-free law may cause some workers to leave their jobs at bar and restaurant businesses. “The concern was that once smoking was no longer allowed, workers would no longer be interested in that particular job. Ostensibly, when the smoking law changed, the mix of characteristics in their job (such as wages, job responsibilities, the presence of second hand smoke) may have changed and caused people to choose another place of work. But the study did not bear this out,” said Thompson.
Author Ellen Hahn hopes that this study will give the restaurant industry the courage to stop fighting smoke-free laws.
“There’s no reason the hospitality industry should resist smoke-free legislation in light of the huge body of research showing that it doesn’t impact business,” said Hahn.
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Article adapted by Medical News Today from original press release.
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The Substance Abuse Policy Research Program (http://www.saprp.org/) of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funds research into policies related to alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation focuses on the pressing health and health care issues facing our country. As the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to improving the health and health care of all Americans, the Foundation works with a diverse group of organizations and individuals to identify solutions and achieve comprehensive, meaningful and timely change. For more than 30 years the Foundation has brought experience, commitment, and a rigorous, balanced approach to the problems that affect the health and health care of those it serves. Helping Americans lead healthier lives and get the care they need - the Foundation expects to make a difference in our lifetime. For more information, visit http://www.rwjf.org/.
Source:
Carol Vieira
Burness Communications
Prabhu Ponkshe
Substance Abuse Policy Research Program
May 6th, 2008
More and more U.S. college students are smoking tobacco using waterpipes or hookahs and it’s becoming a growing public health issue, according to a new study led by a Virginia Commonwealth University researcher.
The findings offer important insight into the prevalence and perceptions related to waterpipe tobacco smokers and are reported in the May issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health. The article is also featured in an editorial in the same issue.
“These results should serve as an alarm bell to anyone interested in public health in the United States. Preventing tobacco-caused death and disease means remaining alert to new forms of tobacco smoking and then understanding the health risks of these new forms and communicating these risks to public health workers, policy makers, and to smokers themselves,” said principal investigator Thomas Eissenberg, Ph.D., associate professor in the VCU Department of Psychology.
In a hookah, tobacco is heated by charcoal, and the resulting smoke is passed through a water-filled chamber, cooling the smoke before it reaches the smoker. Some waterpipe users perceive this method of smoking tobacco as less harmful and addictive than cigarette smoking.
According to Eissenberg, current and prospective waterpipe tobacco smokers should be made aware that waterpipe tobacco smoking is not as benign as they might think. Waterpipe and cigarette smoke contains some of the same toxins — disease-causing tar and carbon monoxide, as well as dependence-producing nicotine. Additionally, the exposure to these toxins through waterpipe smoking may be greater due to longer periods of use.
Further, smokers take more and larger puffs with waterpipes, leading to inhalation of 100 times more smoke from a single waterpipe use episode relative to a single cigarette.
Through a cross-sectional study, approximately 744 students, mostly between the ages of 18 and 21, completed an Internet survey that included questions about demographics, tobacco use, risk perceptions and perceived social acceptability.
The research team found that approximately 43 percent of those surveyed had smoked tobacco using a waterpipe in the past year; and 20 percent of them had smoked tobacco using a waterpipe in the past month. Users were more likely to perceive waterpipes as less harmful than cigarettes compared to those who had never used a waterpipe before.
“The data we report, along with data from other schools, show that waterpipe tobacco smoking is common on college campuses across the country. Thus, prevention messages, especially those that communicate the potential risks of waterpipe tobacco smoking, should focus on college campuses.”
In future studies, Eissenberg and his team hope to examine the prevalence of this method of tobacco use in a large, national sample of waterpipe tobacco smokers in the United States, and assess potential health risks and dependence-producing effects. In the future, researchers may be able to determine the role that waterpipe use among youth may serve as a ‘gateway’ for use of other tobacco products or psychoactive substances.
This work was supported by grants from the National Cancer Institute, The National Institute on Drug Abuse, and the Fogarty International Center.
The Journal of Adolescent Health is the official journal of The Society of Adolescent Medicine.
About VCU and the VCU Medical Center: Virginia Commonwealth University is the largest university in Virginia and ranks among the top 100 universities in the country in sponsored research. Located on two downtown campuses in Richmond, VCU enrolls nearly 32,000 students in 205 certificate and degree programs in the arts, sciences and humanities. Sixty-five of the programs are unique in Virginia, many of them crossing the disciplines of VCU’s 15 schools and one college. MCV Hospitals and the health sciences schools of Virginia Commonwealth University compose the VCU Medical Center, one of the nation’s leading academic medical centers. For more, see http://www.vcu.edu.
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Richmond, VA 23284
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