Effects of Varenicline on Smoking Lapse in Smokers With and Without Schizophrenia

Summary

The objective of this study is to determine the mechanisms by which varenicline, an effective smoking cessation treatment, protects against relapse. Varenicline will be administered in smokers with schizophrenia and control smokers using a randomized, double-blind, cross-over design. Smokers will be asked to stop smoking overnight; the next day the ability to resist smoking will be assessed in a laboratory smoking lapse paradigm. Measures of tobacco craving, reinforcement and withdrawal-related cognitive dysfunction will be correlated with time to lapse. The results could have significant clinical implications by identifying mechanisms by which smokers with schizophrenia are at more risk for relapse than the general population, leading to the development of more effective smoking cessation therapies.

Timeline

Start

2013-06

Primary completion

2015-05

Completion

2015-05

Drugs

Indications