[Newsmp] A study has shown that varenicline (trade name Champix, Pfizer), a medication that aids in smoking cessation, is effective in quitting smoking in patients with type 2 diabetes.
On the 21st (local time), the JAMA Network Open, a journal of the American Medical Association, published the results of double-blind, placebo-controlled, and randomized clinical trial recruited on 300 patients with type 2 diabetes at 5 hospitals in Catania, Italy.
Despite the unique behavioral and metabolic characteristics of smokers with type 2 diabetes, the researchers explained that the evidence for efficacious smoking cessation interventions for them is limited.
Accordingly, the research team randomized 300 patients with type 2 diabetes who smoke an average of more than 10 cigarettes a day to either varenicline or placebo treatment, consisting of a 12-week treatment phase followed by a 40-week follow-up, nontreatment phase.
The primary endpoint of the study was the continuous abstinence rate (CAR) at weeks 9 to 24, and the secondary endpoints were the CAR at weeks 9 to 12 and weeks 9 to 52 as well as the 7-day point prevalence of abstinence at weeks 12, 24, and 52.
As a result, the primary endpoint, the CAR at weeks 9 to 24 was 24% in the varenicline group, four times higher than 6% in the placebo group, and the odds ratio (OR) was 4.95 (P<0.001).
The CAR at 9 to 12 weeks was 31.3% in the varenicline group, more than 4 times higher than 7.3% in the placebo group, and the OR was 5.77 (P<0.001), which was close to 6 times.
Moreover, the CAR at 9 to 52 weeks in the varenicline group was 18.7%, nearly half of the CAR at 9 to 12 weeks, but it was still nearly four times higher than that of the placebo group, and the OR was also four times higher at 4.07 (P<0.001).
The 7-day point prevalence of abstinence at weeks 12, 24, and 52, the secondary endpoint, was also higher for the varenicline versus placebo group.
In terms of safety, the most frequent adverse events such as nausea, insomnia, abnormal dreams, and anxiety were reported more commonly in the varenicline group, but there were no serious adverse events related to treatment.
As a result, the research said that varenicline should be used in smoking cessation programs for patients with type 2 diabetes.
