Evaluation of the momba live long remote smoking detection system during and after pregnancy: Development and usability study

Abstract

Background: The smoking relapse rate during the first 12 months after pregnancy is around 80% in the United States. Delivering remote smoking cessation interventions to women in the postpartum period can reduce the burden associated with frequent office visits and can enable remote communication and support. Developing reliable, remote, smoking measuring instruments is a crucial step in achieving this vision. Objective: The study presents the evaluation of the MoMba Live Long system, a smartphone-based breath carbon monoxide (CO) meter and a custom iOS smartphone app. We report on how our smoking detection system worked in a controlled office environment and in an out-of-office environment to examine its potential to deliver a remote contingency management intervention. Methods: In-office breath tests were completed using both the MoMba Live Long system and a commercial monitor, the piCO+ Smokerlyzer. In addition, each participant provided a urine test for smoking status validation through cotinine. We used in-office test data to verify the validity of the MoMba Live Long smoking detection system. We also collected out-of-office tests to assess how the system worked remotely and enabled user verification. Pregnant adult women in their second or third trimester participated in the study for a period of 12 weeks. This study was carried out in the United States. Results: Analyses of in-office tests included 143 breath tests contributed from 10 participants. CO readings between the MoMba Live Long system and the piCO+ were highly correlated (r=.94). In addition, the MoMba Live Long system accurately distinguished smokers from nonsmokers with a sensitivity of 0.91 and a specificity of 0.94 when the piCO+ was used as a gold standard, and a sensitivity of 0.81 and specificity of 1.0 when cotinine in urine was used to confirm smoking status. All participants indicated that the system was easy to use. Conclusions: Relatively inexpensive portable and internet-connected CO monitors can enable remote smoking status detection in a wide variety of nonclinical settings with reliable and valid measures comparable to a commercially available CO monitor.