Am J Psychiatry 1990; 147:1353-1357
Copyright © 1990 by American Psychiatric Association
Effects of doxepin on withdrawal symptoms in smoking cessation
JK Murphy, NB Edwards, AD Downs, BJ Ackerman and TL Rosenthal
Department of Psychiatry, University of Tennessee, Memphis.
In a double-blind study, 15 cigarette smokers self-monitored 10 withdrawal
symptoms. For the first 21 days (baseline), subjects received doxepin
hydrochloride, up to 150 mg/day, or inert medication while continuing to
smoke. On day 22, they were instructed to stop smoking; medication was
continued. Withdrawal symptoms on the first 28 days of treatment (baseline
and 7 days of attempted cessation) were analyzed. During cessation,
subjects taking doxepin reported significantly less craving for cigarettes.
Results from this study and others suggest that antidepressants may
attenuate the severity of symptoms during withdrawal from addictive
substances.
