In Business This Week

A NICOTINE FIX FROM WARNER-LAMBERT

Gnawing toothpicks, chewing gum, crunching ice cubes, picking fights--that's what most smokers resort to when they quit. But Warner-Lambert may have a better way.

Working with the Swedish Kabi Pharmacia and Cygnus Therapeutic Systems of California, Warner-Lambert hopes to market a small patch that attaches to the skin and leaks small doses of nicotine for up to 16 hours. The patch, now before the Food & Drug Administration, is supposed to wean smokers away from cigarettes. Other companies vying for a piece of the potentially giant patch market include Ciba-Geigy and Marion Merrell Dow.EDITED BY PETER FINCH