The risk is uncertain, so patients should make an informed decision. Disciplines Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Comments Copyright © 2009, BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. The original publication is available at http://dx.doi.org/ 10.1136/bmj.b4360 This article is available at Fisher Digital Publications: http://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/pharmacy_facpub/1 [Editorials] BMJ Issue: Volume 339, 7 November...

Original article Jorenby DE, Hays JT, Rigotti NA, et al. Efficacy of varenicline, an α4β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor partial agonist, vs placebo or sustained-release bupropion for smoking cessation: a randomized controlled trial. JAMA 2006; 296: 56–63. Smoking cessation remains a major problem for the numerous tobacco-dependent smokers willing to quit. The aim of this study was to investi...

Introduction Creating appropriate and sustainable treatment plans for patients with concurrent disorders presents a challenge to psychiatrists addiction medicine specialists alike. Although varenicline has been found be one of the most effective medications smoking cessation abstinence, caution is needed when starting on this medication. In case, young female provisionally diagnosed bipolar I d...

Background: Varenicline was approved for use in the United States in 2006, and has proven to be the most effective smoking cessation therapy currently available. Unfortunately, there have been some recent concerns regarding its safety. The FDA added a black box warning to varenicline in July, 2009, advising patients and providers of the possible link between varenicline and suicidal ideation an...

Aim: We aimed to investigate in vitro effects of varenicline on spontaneous contractile responses of proximal and distal colon smooth muscle in control and IBS rats. Methods: The animal model of IBS-like visceral hypersensitivity was induced by intra-colonic infusion of 0.5% Acetic Acid (AA) in saline once daily between postnatal days 8-21. Control animals received saline instead of AA. Experim...

Background It is known that nicotine increases energy expenditure, basic metabolism and has appetite-suppressing properties, which likely explains why smokers tend to have lower body weight than non-smokers and why smoking cessation is followed by weight gain up to 12 kgr (7 kgr in median). Thus smoking cessation often has the disadvantage of increasing the risk of metabolic syndrome; fact that...