Spironolactone and Varenicline tartrate

• Generic Name: spironolactone
• Dosage Forms: n.a.
• Other Brand Names: Aldactone, CaroSpir

Spironolactone is a potassium-sparing diuretic (water pill) that prevents your body from absorbing too much salt and keeps your potassium levels from getting too low.

Spironolactone is used to treat heart failure, high blood pressure (hypertension), or hypokalemia (low potassium levels in the blood).

Spironolactone also treats fluid retention (edema) in people with congestive heart failure, cirrhosis of the liver, or a kidney disorder called nephrotic syndrome.

Spironolactone is also used to diagnose or treat a condition in which you have too much aldosterone in your body. Aldosterone is a hormone produced by your adrenal glands to help regulate the salt and water balance in your body.

• Generic Name: varenicline
• Dosage Forms: n.a.
• Other Brand Names: Chantix, Chantix Starter Pack, Chantix Continuing Month

Adjunct in the cessation of cigarette smoking.

USPHS guideline for the treatment of tobacco use and dependence recommends varenicline as one of several first-line drugs that may reliably increase long-term smoking abstinence rates.

In clinical studies, varenicline therapy increased continuous abstinence rates compared with placebo or active comparator (e.g., bupropion). Also reduced urge to smoke.

In studies in patients with stable, documented cardiovascular disease and patients with mild to moderate COPD, efficacy of varenicline was comparable to that in the general smoking population without these conditions.

Also evaluated in patients with stable major depressive disorder in a postmarketing study; benefits also observed in this population without evidence of increased neuropsychiatric effects. (See Neuropsychiatric Symptoms and Suicidality under Cautions.)

Efficacy and safety of varenicline given in conjunction with other smoking cessation therapies (e.g., bupropion, nicotine replacement therapy) not established.