The researchers developed and tested a novel nicotine inhaler to see whether it helps smokers to quit smoking. Participants in the study were randomly assigned to receive either a nicotine inhaler plus a nicotine patch, or a placebo inhaler plus a nicotine patch.
The results of the New Zealand study funded by the Health Research Council appear in the journal Nicotine and Tobacco Research.
Study team leader Professor Julian Crane from the University of Otago, Wellington, says the findings are the first evidence that inhaled nicotine from a simple standard inhaler is highly effective and substantially increases a smoker's chances of quitting compared to the best current nicotine replacement treatment.
"Currently most smokers use nicotine patches to help them stop smoking. This study shows that if you add a nicotine inhaler to a nicotine patch, it doubles the chances of quitting over a nicotine patch alone," says Professor Crane.