Bupropion Vs. Chantix: Drug Comparison

Bupropion is the active ingredient in the brand-name medication Wellbutrin SR^®. The information below is about brand name Wellbutrin SR. According to the FDA, “Generic medicines use the same active ingredients as brand-name medicines and work the same way, so they have the same risks and benefits as the brand-name medicines.”

Wellbutrin SR (bupropion sustained-release) is an antidepressant that works by inhibiting the reuptake of norepinephrine and dopamine in the brain, which helps improve mood and reduce symptoms of depression. Its FDA-approved indication includes the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD). Off-label uses may include smoking cessation, anxiety, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Wellbutrin SR is available in sustained-release tablet form, typically taken once or twice daily. Common side effects include insomnia, dry mouth, constipation, and headache, and it has a boxed warning for an increased risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors in children, adolescents, and young adults during the initial stages of treatment.

Chantix^® (varenicline) is a prescription medication used to help people quit smoking by blocking nicotine receptors in the brain, reducing the pleasurable effects of smoking and easing withdrawal symptoms. Its FDA-approved indication is for smoking cessation in adults, often used alongside counseling and support programs. Chantix comes in tablet form and is typically taken for 12 to 24 weeks, starting with a titrating dose that increases over 1–1.5 weeks. Common side effects include nausea, vivid dreams, flatulence, headache, and sleep disturbances, while serious warnings include the risk of mood changes, depression, and suicidal thoughts.

Aminoketone antidepressant

Nicotinic receptor partial agonist

Wellbutrin SR (bupropion hydrochloride) is indicated:

• For the treatment of major depressive disorder (MDD)

Chantix (varenicline tartrate) is indicated:

• For use as an aid to smoking cessation treatment

• Typically taken orally twice daily

• Comes in 100 mg, 150 mg, and 200 mg tablets

• Typically taken orally once or twice daily

• Comes in 0.5 mg and 1 mg tablets

Most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥5% and ≥2% more than placebo rate) are:

• Headache

• Dry mouth

• Nausea

• Insomnia

• Dizziness

• Inflammation of the throat

• Constipation

• Agitation

• Anxiety

• Abdominal pain

• Ringing in the ears

• Tremor

• Fluttering heartbeat

• Muscle pain

• Sweating

• Rash

• Anorexia

Most common adverse reactions (>5% and twice the rate seen in placebo-treated patients) were:

• Nausea

• Abnormal (e.g., vivid, unusual, or strange) dreams

• Constipation

• Flatulence

• Vomiting

• Seizure disorder

• Current or prior diagnosis of bulimia or anorexia nervosa

• Abrupt discontinuation of alcohol, benzodiazepines, barbiturates, antiepileptic drugs

• Monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs)

• Known hypersensitivity to bupropion or other ingredients of Wellbutrin SR.

• Drug interactions: CYP2B6 inducers, drugs metabolized by CYP2D6, digoxin, drugs that lower seizure threshold, dopaminergic drugs (levodopa and amantadine), MAOIs

• Drug-laboratory test interactions: Wellbutrin SR can cause false-positive urine test results for amphetamines

• History of serious hypersensitivity or skin reactions to Chantix

• Drug interactions: other smoking cessation therapies

• Neuropsychiatric adverse events during smoking cessation

• Seizure risk

• High blood pressure

• Activation of mania/hypomania

• Psychosis and other neuropsychiatric reactions

• Angle-closure glaucoma

• Neuropsychiatric adverse events

• Seizures

• Interaction with alcohol

• Accidental injury

• Cardiovascular events: Patients with underlying cardiovascular (CV) disease may be at increased risk of CV events; however, these concerns must be balanced with the health benefits of smoking cessation

• Sleepwalking

• Angioedema and hypersensitivity reactions

• Serious skin reactions

• Nausea

WARNING: SUICIDAL THOUGHTS AND BEHAVIORS

Increased risk of suicidal thinking and behavior in children, adolescents and young adults taking antidepressants.

Monitor for worsening and emergence of suicidal thoughts and behaviors.

*This information is from the label for brand name Wellbutrin SR^®. See the Full Prescribing Information for more complete information. Bupropion, the active ingredient in Wellbutrin XL, may also be the active ingredient in other medications, and this information may not be accurate for all medications that include the active ingredient bupropion.

*This information is from the label for brand name Chantix^®. See the Full Prescribing Information for more complete information. Varenicline, the active ingredient in Chantix, may also be the active ingredient in other medications, and this information may not be accurate for all medications that include the active ingredient varenicline.