Varenicline

Varenicline tablets should be swallowed whole with water and can be taken with or without food. Before starting your course of varenicline, you should decide on your quit date. The date should ideally be between day 8 and day 14 of treatment. If you are not willing or able to set a target quit date within 2 weeks of starting treatment, you should choose a target quit date within 5 weeks. It’s a good idea to write this date on your pack as a reminder.

Varenicline comes as a 0.5mg tablet and a 1mg tablet.

Week 1

• Day 1 to 3 – take one 0.5mg tablet once a day
• Day 4 to 7 – take one 0.5mg tablet twice daily, once in the morning and once in the evening, at about the same time each day

Week 2 to 12

• Day 8 to 14 – take 1mg twice daily, once in the morning and once in the evening, at about the same time each day (this can be achieved by either taking 2 x 0.5mg tablets twice daily or by taking 1 x 1mg tablet twice daily)

After 12 weeks of treatment, if you have stopped smoking, our doctors may recommend an additional 12 weeks of treatment with varenicline 1mg tablets twice daily to help avoid returning to smoking.

If you are not able or willing to quit smoking straight away, you should reduce smoking during the first 12 weeks of treatment and quit by the end of that treatment period. You should then continue to take varenicline 1mg tablets twice daily for a further 12 weeks resulting in a total of 24 weeks of treatment.

We may adjust your dose if you have other conditions or if you find you are experiencing side effects. Always take this medicine exactly as our doctor has told you.

While many online retailers claim to supply genuine medicines, they may be unregulated, provided without a genuine doctor consultation and potentially very dangerous. You can rest assured, PrivateDoc is a fully registered digital health service. We have UK registered doctors, nurses and pharmacists that review and assess every consultation. All the medicines we supply are 100% genuine and fully regulated by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

Like all medicines, this medicine can cause side effects, although not everybody gets them. Giving up smoking, with or without treatment, can cause various ‘withdrawal’ symptoms. These could include changes of mood (like feeling depressed, irritable, frustrated or anxious), sleeplessness, difficulty concentrating, decreased heart rate and increased appetite or weight gain.

Most of these withdrawal side effects are mild or moderate, and will reduce in time however, you should be aware of the possible emergence of serious neuro psychiatric symptoms, such as agitation, depressed mood, or changes in behaviour during a quit attempt with or without varenicline and you should contact a doctor or pharmacist if you experience such symptoms.

Other side effects include:
Very common (affects more than 1 in 10 people)

• Chest infection, inflammation of the sinuses
• Abnormal dreams
• Difficulty sleeping
• Headache
• Nausea

Common (may affect up to 1 in 10 people)

• Inflammation of the nose and throat
• Increased weight, decreased appetite, increased appetite
• Sleepiness, dizziness, changes in the way things taste
• Shortness of breath, cough
• Heartburn, vomiting, constipation, diarrhoea, feeling bloated, abdominal pain, toothache, indigestion, flatulence, dry mouth
• Skin rash, itching
• Joint ache, muscle ache, back pain
• Chest pain, tiredness

Uncommon (may affect up to 1 in 100 people)

• Fungal infection, viral infection
• Feeling of panic, difficulty thinking, restlessness, mood swings, depression, anxiety, hallucinations, changes in sex drive
• Seizure, tremor, feeling sluggish, less sensitive to touch
• Conjunctivitis, eye pain
• Ringing in the ears
• Angina, rapid heart rate, palpitations, increased heart rate
• Increased blood pressure, hot flush
• Inflammation of nose, sinuses and throat, congestion of nose, throat and chest, hoarseness, hay fever, throat irritation, congested sinuses, excess mucous from nose causing cough, runny nose
• Red blood in stools, irritated stomach, change of bowel habit, belching, mouth ulcers, pain in the gums
• Reddening of the skin, acne, increased sweating, night sweats
• Muscle spasms, chest wall pain
• Abnormally frequent urination, urination at night
• Increased menstrual flow
• Chest discomfort, flu like illness, fever, feeling weak or unwell
• High blood sugar
• Heart attack
• Suicidal thoughts
• Changes in thinking or behaviour (such as aggression)

Rare (may affect up to 1 in 1,000 people)

• Excessive thirst
• Feeling unwell or unhappy, slow thinking
• Stroke
• Increased muscle tension, difficulty with speech, difficulty with coordination, reduced sense of taste, altered sleep pattern
• Disturbed vision, eyeball discolouration, dilated pupils, sensitivity to light, short-sightedness, watery eyes
• Irregular heartbeat or heart rhythm disturbances
• Throat pain, snoring
• Blood in vomit, abnormal stools, coated tongue
• Stiff joints, rib pain
• Glucose in urine, increased urine volume and frequency
• Vaginal discharge, changes in sexual ability
• Feeling cold, cyst
• Diabetes
• Sleep walking
• Loss of contact with reality and unable to think or judge clearly (psychosis)
• Abnormal behaviour
• Severe skin reactions including Erythema Multiforme (a type of rash) and Stevens-Johnson Syndrome (a serious illness with blistering of the skin, mouth, around the eyes or genitals)
• Serious allergic reactions including angioedema (swelling of the face, mouth, or throat)

Not known
Very common (affects more than 1 in 10 people)

• Transient loss of consciousness