Table 2.
Systematic reviews of varenicline.
| Study | Studies included | Duration of treatment | No. of participants (varenicline) |
No. of participants (placebo) |
No. of participants with events (varenicline) | No. of participants with events (placebo) | Outcome for serious cardiovascular adverse event: varenicline vs. placebo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Singh et al. [2011] | 14 double-blind placebo-controlled RCTs | Range: 7–52 weeks | 4908 | 3308 | 52 | 27 | Peto OR (95% CI) 1.72 (1.09–2.71) |
| Prochaska and Hilton [2012] | 22 double-blind placebo-controlled RCTs | Median: 12 weeks | 5431 | 3801 | 34 | 18 | Risk difference: 0.27% (−0.10% to 0.63%, p = 0.15, I
2 = 0%) Relative risk of at least one event (14 studies): 1.40 (0.82–2.39, p = 0.22, I 2 = 0%) Mantel-Haenszel OR: 1.41 (0.82–2.42, p = 0.22, I 2 = 0%) Peto OR: 1.58 (0.90–2.76, p = 0.11, I 2 = 0%). |
| Ware et al. [2013] | 15 double-blind placebo-controlled RCTs | Range: 12–52 weeks | 4190 | 2812 | MACE+: 26 MACE:13 |
MACE+: 12 MACE: 6 |
MACE+: HR: 1.951 (95% CI: 0.789–4.823) Risk difference: 0.010 (95%CI: -0.002 to 0.022) MACE+: HR: 1.740 (95% CI: 0.905–3.343) Risk difference: 0.006 (95%CI: -0.002 to 0.015) |
CI, confidence interval; HR, hazard ratio; MACE, major adverse cardiovascular event; OR, odds ratio; RCT, randomized controlled trial.