Chantix Increases Risk for Cardiovascular Events, New Study Finds

div itemprop="articleBody" class="article">Washington, DCResults from a new study on the smoking-cessation drug Chantix (varenicline) show that it is associated with a small but significant increase in the risk for cardiovascular events.

The meta-analysis of Chantix studies, published in the online edition of the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), found patients who took Chantix experienced more serious cardiovascular events than patients on placebo. While the experts say the difference in the analysis is small, the population effect is not, as some seven million people in the US took Chantix in 2010.

The study, which looked at randomized, placebo-controlled trials involving 8,216 people, follows on from a revision of the prescribing information for Chantix, as stated by the Food and Drug Administration in June, to include a warning about an increased risk for second heart attack and peripheral artery disease in people who have a history of cardiovascular disease.