Vaporized Nicotine Products More Effective Than Nicotine Replacement Therapy

THURSDAY, July 17, 2025 (HealthDay News) — In a socially disadvantaged population, vaporized nicotine products (VNPs) are more effective than nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) for smoking cessation, according to a study published online July 15 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Ryan J. Courtney, Ph.D., from the University of New South Wales in Australia, and colleagues examined whether VNPs are more effective than NRT for smoking cessation among people experiencing social disadvantage in a two-group, open-label, randomized trial involving 1,045 adults who smoked daily. Participants were randomly assigned to a free eight-week supply of NRT or VNPs; all received text-message support.

Overall, 866 participants completed the final follow-up. The researchers found that the verified six-month continuous abstinence rate was 9.6 and 28.4 percent in the NRT and VNP groups, respectively (posterior risk difference estimate, 18.7 percent; more than 99 percent posterior probability that VNP is superior). Compared with the NRT group, self-reported adverse events occurred less often in the VNP group (355 events among 237 participants versus 442 events among 278 participants; incident rate ratio, 0.75).

“VNPs with flavor choice had greater effectiveness compared with NRT gum or lozenge when provided in combination with minimal text-message behavioral support,” the authors write.

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