Study of Varenicline (Champix) for Smoking Cessation/Reduction in Patients With Bipolar Disorder

Bipolar Disorder is a chronic relapsing mental disorder characterized by periods of elevated, expansive and irritable mood, often alternating with periods of significant clinical depression. People with Bipolar Disorder are typically heavy smokers who have difficulty quitting, and this is associated with significant tobacco-related medical illness and death. The proposed study will be a double-blind, placebo-controlled 10-week clinical trial of the safety and efficacy of varenicline (Champix™) in thirty subjects with Bipolar I Disorder. This medication is the latest first-line pharmacotherapy for smoking cessation and has been shown to be efficacious for smoking cessation, but has not yet been systematically studied in persons with Bipolar Disorder.