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Despite vigorous attempts to convince smokers of the benefits of quitting and substituting other rewards for a cigarette, many people do not stop smoking or they relapse repeatedly. This crossover study using functional magnetic resonance imaging examined how a nicotine patch alters responses in brain reward systems to the valence and the magnitude of a reinforcer.
The participants, 28 chronic smokers and 28 nonsmokers, responded to a target on a computer screen after receiving cues about the trial's valence (getting or losing money) and magnitude of loss or gain (–$1.50–$15.00). Only smokers received placebo or nicotine patch before testing. Compared with controls, smokers under both conditions exhibited lower valence-dependent activity in …