Running Head: THERAPY PLUS MEDICATION EFFECTS ON SMOKING CESSATIONS.
Nicotine Substitute Therapy plus Anxiety Disorder Medication and its effects on Smoking Cessation.
Abstract.
The purpose of this study is to investigate if the combined effects of nicotine substitute therapy and Zoloft (anxiety disorder medication) will reduce the amount of anxiety and cravings patients experience during smoking cessation; as well as, increase the success rate of staying smoke free. There will be 200 participants in this study, consisting of 100 white females and 100 white males between the ages of 18 to 22. We"ll be using a 2x2 factorial design with a pre and post test. The pre and post test will consist of the same daily anxiety test that participants will fill out each night of the treatment. The participants will receive one of four conditions, either the nicotine transdermal 24 hour patch plus 50mg Zoloft pill; the 50mg Zoloft plus placebo nicotine patch; the Nicotine transdermal 24-hour patch plus a placebo Zoloft; or they will receive both the placebo nicotine patch and the placebo Zoloft pill. Both the nicotine transdermal patch and the 50mg Zoloft, as well as, the corresponding placebo treatments are to be administered each morning of the treatment by the participant. Participants will also be asked to record their cravings for cigarettes each day of the study.
Nicotine Substitute Therapy plus Anxiety Disorder Medication and its Effects on Smoking Cessation.
Nearly fifty million Americans smoke, resulting in nearly 450,000 deaths each year. The smoke from cigarettes alone contains over 4,000 different chemicals, including 200 known poisons. Cigarettes are also highly addictive; one-third of the young people who "experiment" end up addicted by the time they turn twenty. Seventy-four percent of smokers have reported that they would like to quit but are unable to stop due to their dependence (Hunter & Thompson, 1998).