RT Journal
A1 Dhelaria RK, Rothberg M
T1 IS varenicline effectiveness declining in randomized trials?
JF Archives of Internal Medicine
JO Archives of Internal Medicine
YR 2011
FD October 24
VO 171
IS 19
SP 1770
OP 1772
DO 10.1001/archinternmed.2011.493
UL http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archinternmed.2011.493
AB 
In their recent study of varenicline tartrate, Hajek et al1 found that beginning therapy 4 weeks before the target quit date improved 12-week abstinence rates compared with the usual practice of beginningtherapy 1 week before quitting. It is interesting to note that the 47.2% abstinence rate in the intervention group is almost identical to the rates observed in previous randomized trials of varenicline (42%-47%) in which therapy was started only 1 week before quitting.2- 5 More perplexing is the strikingly low quit rate of 20.8% in the placebo group, which received a regimen similar to that of active participants in the previous studies. At the same time, the rate of reported nausea—59% in the active group and 48% in the placebo group—was twice that previously reported.