Motivational and behavioral factors predicting success in cigarette smoking-cessation treatment combining group therapy with bupropion

We report a smoking-cessation treatment program combining bupropion and a short five session cognitive-behavior group therapy in smokers over 2 months. After 8 weeks of treatment, four participants have managed to stop smoking completely. The factors predicting success in treatment in the short term were: (1) high motivation to quit smoking and readiness to change; (2) a supervised gradual increase in medication from one to two tablets a day according to patients' response to medication; (3) a short phase of harm-reduction is an important and acceptable phase toward complete cessation of smoking; and (4) assessment and group work on smoking behavior, craving, and high-risk situations.