Varenicline and Smoking Cessation in Schizophrenia
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2012-08-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
There is a strong association between smoking and schizophrenia with prevalence rates ranging
from 74% to 90%, versus a national average of 30% in nonschizophrenic individuals. A number
of hypotheses have been proposed to explain the relationship between high smoking rates and
schizophrenia, mostly relating to self-medication primarily for the negative symptoms of
schizophrenia. Smoking cessation rates among schizophrenic patients are considerably lower
than for other psychiatric disorders. The negative health effects of smoking increase the
morbidity and mortality in schizophrenic patients. Currently, the efficacy of bupropion HCl
in the treatment of smoking by schizophrenic subjects is inconclusive, and there have not
been any published studies of the efficacy of varenicline in schizophrenic subjects. As
varenicline appears to be a promising treatment in non-psychiatric patients, it would be
useful to expand these studies to examine its effects in schizophrenic patients. Identifying
effective and safe means of smoking cessation for this vulnerable population has the
potential to reduce morbidity and mortality among individuals with schizophrenia.
Phase:
Phase 2
Details
Lead Sponsor:
University of Minnesota University of Minnesota - Clinical and Translational Science Institute
Collaborators:
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) National Institutes of Health (NIH)