Excellent points about the trustworthiness of industry controlled research, and with Pfizer and varenicline the greatest study control we've yet seen. We know that varenicline is causing a greater number of serious adverse events than any quitting product in history and worldwide it is being blamed for hundreds of deaths. The question that all of us should be focusing upon is, is it worth it? What is the risk vs. benefit analyis look like? Sadly, in the only head to head competition between varenicline and the nicotine patch Pfizer's consultants were compelled to admit that there was no statistical difference between varenicline and nicotine patch quitters in the percentage of quitters who were actually quit at both 6 months and 1 year. But don't take my word for it. Read the full-text study yourself. It's free and available at the following link: http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=18263663 You'll find that Pfizer's consultants buried these critical long term findings under "Efficacy" and the heading "7-day point prevalence of abstinence"
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Excellent points about the trustworthiness of industry controlled research, and with Pfizer and varenicline the greatest study control we've yet seen. We know that varenicline is causing a greater number of serious adverse events than any quitting product in history and worldwide it is being blamed for hundreds of deaths. The question that all of us should be focusing upon is, is it worth it? What is the risk vs. benefit analyis look like? Sadly, in the only head to head competition between varenicline and the nicotine patch Pfizer's consultants were compelled to admit that there was no statistical difference between varenicline and nicotine patch quitters in the percentage of quitters who were actually quit at both 6 months and 1 year. But don't take my word for it. Read the full-text study yourself. It's free and available at the following link: http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=18263663 You'll find that Pfizer's consultants buried these critical long term findings under "Efficacy" and the heading "7-day point prevalence of abstinence"
John R. Polito
August 21, 2009 - 7:57amNicotine Cessation Educator
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