Could a Stop-Smoking pill tame dangerous heart rhythms?
NCT ID NCT06780215
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested whether varenicline tartrate, a drug typically used to help people quit smoking, can reduce frequent extra heartbeats (PVCs) in people who have had a heart attack. 116 adults aged 18-80 with a prior heart attack and at least 1,000 PVCs per day were randomly assigned to receive either varenicline or a placebo for 6 weeks, while all continued standard heart medications. The main goal was to see if varenicline could lower the number of PVCs compared to placebo.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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116 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Feb 2025
- Finished
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Sep 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 80 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: 1. Aged between 18 and 80 years old (inclusive). 2. Premature ventricular contractions of ≥1000 times/average 24-hour revealed by screening (72-hour Holter monitoring). 3. Definite diagnosis of myocardial infarction for more than 4 weeks, with NYHA Class I-II. 4. Maintained on Metoprolol Succinate Sustained-release Tablets. (If other types of beta-blocker therapy were being used before screening, they must be replaced with Metoprolol Succinate Sustained-release Tablets.) 5. Understand and comply with the study procedures and methods, and sign the informed consent form. Exclusion Criteria: 1. Myocardial infarction occurring within 4 weeks. 2. NYHA Class III-IV. 3. Use of amiodarone within 1 month before screening. 4. Use of antiarrhythmic drugs, or traditional Chinese medicine, Chinese patent medicine for arrhythmia other than amiodarone within 1 week prior to screening. 5. Sustained ventricular tachycardia, ventricular flutter, or ventricular fibrillation detected during screening (non-sustained ventricular tachycardia does not need to be excluded). 6. Sick sinus syndrome without pacemaker implantation, II-III degree atrioventricular block, or bundle branch block bilateral. 7. Moderate to severe bronchial asthma or severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. 8. Severe renal impairment (eGFR less than 30 mL/min/1.73 m²). 9. Hyperthyroidism. 10. Severe sequelae of stroke. 11. Epilepsy, schizophrenia, or depression. 12. Pregnant or breastfeeding women, or those with a positive blood pregnancy test result before randomization. 13. Combined cancer or other diseases, with an expected life expectancy of less than 1 year. 14. Perioperative period of cardiothoracic surgery (1 week before surgery to 2 weeks after surgery). 15. Severe electrolyte disturbance. 16. Digitalis poisoning. 17. Known hypersensitivity to varenicline tartrate tablets or their excipients. 18. History of smoking and cessation for less than 1 year. 19. Individuals taking varenicline tartrate tablets for smoking cessation. 20. Currently participating in other clinical studies. 21. Other conditions making the subjects unsuitable for enrollment as determined by the investigator.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Shanghai East Hospital
Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality, 200120, China
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.