Ethnicity, comorbidity differences and willingness to stop smoking amongst smokers in Singapore

<bold>Introduction:</bold> Smoking prevalence in South East Asia ranges from 16-72%. However, little is known regarding the characteristics of smokers amongst different ethnic groups. <bold>Methods:</bold> Current smokers (n=468) referred to the Singapore General Hospital smoking cessation programme between 2021 and 2023 were recruited. Clinical data including symptom burden (CAT & mMRC), and patients’ readiness to quit, were prospectively collected. <bold>Results:</bold> The cohort was predominantly male (91%) with a median age of 57.0 (IQR 48.0-64.0) years. Ethnic distribution was 61% Chinese, 24% Malay and 15% Indian. Chinese smokers were significantly older (p<0.001) with higher smoking pack-years (25 vs 21 vs 18, p=0.004). Multivariate analysis adjusted for age, sex, body mass index and smoking pack-years showed a higher prevalence of diabetes mellitus (OR 2.05, 95% CI 1.12-3.73; p=0.02) and peripheral vascular disease (OR 3.8, 95% CI 1.0- 14.6; p=0.05) among Indian compared to Chinese smokers. 66% of the cohort expressed willingness to quit, particularly those who have history of cardiovascular disease (CVD) (p=0.007), previous exposure to smoking cessation counselling (p=0.002) and prior attempts at smoking cessation (p<0.001). Symptom burden, ethnicity and prior respiratory-related hospital admissions did not affect readiness to quit smoking. <bold>Conclusion:</bold> Ethnic differences in prevalence of comorbidities were observed amongst smokers. Smokers with CVD may be more amenable to intensive smoking cessation interventions. Failure of previous smoking cessation efforts should not deter future referrals for smoking counselling. <bold>Funding:</bold> Singapore Ministry of Health's NMRC under its Transition Award (MOH-001275-00) (P.Y.T)