Finally, doctors can breathe easy over Champix’s CV risk
The treatment poses no greater risk than nicotine patches, say Australian researchers
Not that you can get hold of it right now, but when the shortage of varenicline resolves — slated to be in January — some potentially positive news about its safety will be to hand
For about a decade, doctors have been told to “advise patients that varenicline may cause a small increase in risk of a cardiovascular event (for example, heart attack)”, in the words of NPS MedicineWise.
The major study that spurred these warnings was a 2011 meta-analysis of 14 randomised controlled trials, with a total of 8200 patients, that found the relative risk of serious adverse cardiovascular events was 72% higher for patients on varenicline compared with placebo.
Although, in absolute terms, the increase in risk was greater than 1%.
