Using nicotine patches or Zyban will double the chances to quit smoking than those who do not use medication at all. However, despite the relative effactiveness of anti-smoking medications available in the market, 80% of recent quitters are most likely to smoke again within a year according to a review in the latest International Journal of Clinical Practice.
Now, a new kind of drug has been developed that could improve the rate of long-term quitters: Pfizer's Varenicline which is under fast track review at USFDA since late 2005.
"What makes varenicline different to existing medication is that it is the first treatment specifically designed to target the neurobiological mechanism of nicotine dependence."
Initial results show that the drug successfully stimulates dopamine -- sometimes called the brain's pleasure chemical -- as well as blocking nicotine receptors. This reduces nicotine withdrawal symptoms and craving and may also prevent a lapse from turning into a full relapse.
Read more at Science Daily.
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