The effects of transdermal nicotine on inspection time

Rationale The acute administration of nicotine via a cigarette has been demonstrated to enhance inspection time (IT), a measure of rapid visual information processing, while the nicotinic antagonist mecamylamine impairs IT. However, as transdermal nicotine patches provide a slow delivery of nicotine, it is unclear if they produce similar effects to nicotine administered by more rapid methods. Objectives To examine the effects of transdermal nicotine on inspection time. Methods Ten moderate smokers were administered nicotine (21 mg/day) or placebo via a transdermal patch in a randomized, double-blind, repeated measures design. Subjects were administered the IT task at baseline, then 1, 3, and 6h subsequent to patch application. Results The change in IT from baseline was significantly different in the nicotine condition, relative to placebo, at 3 h but not 1 or 6h. Conclusions The findings suggest that nicotine administered via transdermal patches improves IT, but this improvement may be subject to tolerance. Data from previous studies on tolerance to the cognitive effects of nicotine have been inconclusive. However, the slow delivery of nicotine from patches may be more likely to produce such effects. Copyright (C) 2002 John Wiley Sons, Ltd.