Varenicline versus nicotine patch with brief advice for smokers with substance use disorders with or without depression: effects on smoking, substance use and depressive symptoms

What Was Tested

This randomized controlled trial paper looks at Therapeutic nicotine (patch, non-peptide).

Varenicline was compared with transdermal nicotine (NRT) for smokers with current substance use disorders (SUD) for effects on 3-month smoking abstinence (primary outcome) and, secondarily, on 3- and 6 month abstinence while adjusting for medication adherence, and on additional smoking and substance use outcomes.

Moderation by major depressive disorder history (MDD) and adherence were investigated.

Who Took Part

PubMed indexes the participants as adults, both men and women.

Adult smokers (n = 137), in SUD treatment, substance abstinent <12 months (n = 77 varenicline, 60 NRT).

Secondary: point-prevalence abstinence at 6 months, quantity and frequency of smoking and substance use at 3 and 6 months, and within-treatment abstinence, medication adherence and depressive symptoms.

How the Study Was Run

In design terms this was a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study.

The participants were allocated by chance, so the Therapeutic nicotine (patch, non-peptide) group and the comparison group should start out alike.

As a double-blind Therapeutic nicotine (patch, non-peptide) study, the assignments were hidden from both participants and investigators until the end.

A placebo (an inactive look-alike) gave the Therapeutic nicotine (patch, non-peptide) group a baseline to be compared against.

Double-blind double-placebo-controlled randomized design, stratifying by MDD, gender and nicotine dependence, with 3 and 6 months follow-up.

University offices in Rhode Island, USA.

Primary: point-prevalence smoking abstinence (7-day, confirmed) at 3 months.

Smoking outcome analyses were repeated controlling for adherence and investigating adherence as a moderator.

What Was Measured

The subject headings attached to it are Cigarette Smoking, Comorbidity, Counseling, Major Depressive Disorder, Nicotinic Agonists, Patient Compliance and Rhode Island.

Author keywords: Brief advice, depression, nicotine dependence, point-prevalence abstinence, smoking cessation and substance use disorders.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Therapeutic nicotine (patch, non-peptide).

The abstract goes on to report its results in about 6 sentences; this page does not restate them, so read the paper for the findings and their limits.

The publication is from 2017 (Addiction (Abingdon, England)), a journal based in England.

More context: the Therapeutic nicotine (patch, non-peptide) compound page, all human trials.