Completed

Feasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary Effectiveness of a WeChat Quit Coach Smoking Cessation Intervention: A Pilot, Open-labeled, Randomized Controlled Trial Among Chinese Immigrant Smokers

0 criteria met from your profileSee at a glance how your profile meets each eligibility criteria.
What is being tested

WeChat Quit Coach

+ Optional Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) Patches or Lozenges

+ Leaflet

BehavioralDrug
Who is being recruted

Behavior

+ Health Behavior

+ Smoking Cessation

From 18 to 80 Years
See all eligibility criteria
How is the trial designed

Other Study

Interventional
Study Start: February 2022
See protocol details

Summary

Principal SponsorNYU Langone Health
Last updated: January 28, 2026
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Study start date: February 10, 2022

Actual date on which the first participant was enrolled.

The study team will develop and assess the feasibility and acceptability of a WeChat-based peer-group mobile messaging smoking cessation intervention targeting Chinese immigrant smokers in New York City (NYC). For Aim 1, the study team will develop a message library for the WeChat Quit Coach smoking cessation program and conduct in-depth interviews with 20 Chinese immigrant smokers in person to assess content relevance. For Aim 2, a two-arm, open-labeled, pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) will be conducted to test the feasibility and acceptability of the WeChat Quit Coach intervention among 60 Chinese immigrant smokers. Participants will be randomized to intervention (n=40) or control group (n=20). Participants in the intervention group will receive a 6-week WeChat Quit Coach intervention through WeChat private group. Participants in the control group will receive a leaflet with information about existing smoking cessation programs that focus on Chinese American smokers. All the 60 participants will be offered a 4-week supple of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) patches and/or lozenges. Participants will complete a baseline in-person survey at enrollment, a 6-week follow-up phone survey immediately after the intervention, and a 6-month follow-up phone survey. Biochemical test (exhaled carbon monoxide test) will be conducted to confirm abstinence among those who report no smoking in past 7-day at 6-week and 6-month follow-up surveys. Post-test in-depth interviews will be conducted with at least 20 participants in person from the intervention group at 6-week follow-up to obtain more information about the usability and perceptions about the WeChat Quit Coach program. For Aim 3, the investigators will conduct an open-labeled, 3-arm pilot RCT to test the preliminary effectiveness of the WeChat Quit Coach intervention with 90 Chinese immigrant smokers. Participants will be randomized to one of the three groups, including a 6-week intervention group A (IA; n = 30), a 12-week intervention group B (IB; n = 30), and a control group (n = 30). Participants in the intervention groups will either receive a 6-week (IA) or 12-week (IB) WeChat Quit Coach intervention through WeChat private groups. Participants in the control group will receive a leaflet with information of existing smoking cessation programs targeting Chinese American smokers. All 90 participants will be offered a 4-week free supply of NRT patches and/or lozenges. Participants will complete a baseline phone survey at enrollment, 12-week and 6-month follow-up phone surveys. A remote biochemical validation (saliva cotinine test) will be conducted at 12-week and 6-month follow-up to confirm smoking abstinence among those who self-report no smoking in the past 7 days. Post-test in-depth phone interviews will be conducted with up to 30 intervention participants to obtain more information about their perceptions and experience with the WeChat Quit Coach program.

Official TitleFeasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary Effectiveness of a WeChat Quit Coach Smoking Cessation Intervention: A Pilot, Open-labeled, Randomized Controlled Trial Among Chinese Immigrant Smokers
NCT05130788
Principal SponsorNYU Langone Health
Last updated: January 28, 2026
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Protocol

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.
Design Details

150 patients to be enrolled

Total number of participants that the clinical trial aims to recruit.

Other Study

Some studies explore topics that don't fall into a specific category. These might include innovative research, new technologies, or emerging healthcare areas.



Eligibility

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria: person's general health condition or prior treatments.
Conditions
Criteria

Any sex

Biological sex of participants that are eligible to enroll.

From 18 to 80 Years

Range of ages for which participants are eligible to join.

Healthy volunteers not allowed

If individuals who are healthy and do not have the condition being studied can participate.

Conditions

Pathology

BehaviorHealth BehaviorSmoking Cessation

Criteria

Inclusion Criteria: Aim 2: * Age 18-80 years * Chinese immigrant * Have smoked at least 100 cigarettes in a lifetime * Smoke ≥3 days per week * Be somewhat interested in quitting smoking * Has a Smartphone * Current WeChat user who uses WeChat on ≥3 days per week * Live in NYC * Can read and speak Chinese * Be able to provide consent Aim 3: * Age 18 years or above * Chinese immigrant * Have smoked at least 100 cigarettes in a lifetime * Smoke ≥1 days per week * Current WeChat user who uses WeChat on ≥3 days per week * Can read and speak Chinese Exclusion Criteria: Aim 2: * Current participation in other smoking cessation treatment program(s) * Be pregnant or breastfeeding Aim 3: * Current participation in other smoking cessation treatment program(s) * Be pregnant or breastfeeding * Having a household member who has enrolled in this study

Study Plan

Find out more about all the medication administered in this study, their detailed description and what they involve.
Treatment Groups
Study Objectives

3 intervention groups are designated in this study

This study does not include a placebo group 

Treatment Groups

Group I

Experimental
Participants will be assigned to a 6-week intervention period.

Group II

Experimental
Participants will be assigned to a 12-week intervention period.

Group III

Active Comparator

Study Objectives

Primary Objectives

Secondary Objectives

Study Centers

These are the hospitals, clinics, or research facilities where the trial is being conducted. You can find the location closest to you and its status.

This study has 1 location

Suspended

NYU Langone Health

New York, United StatesOpen NYU Langone Health in Google Maps
CompletedOne Study Center