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Racecadotril versus placebo in the treatment of acute diarrhoea in adults
Author(s) -
Hamza H.,
Ben Khalifa H.,
Baumer P.,
Berard H.,
Lecomte J.M.
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
alimentary pharmacology and therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.308
H-Index - 177
eISSN - 1365-2036
pISSN - 0269-2813
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2036.1999.00002.x-i1
Subject(s) - placebo , medicine , tolerability , adverse effect , abdominal distension , distension , gastroenterology , incidence (geometry) , anesthesia , physics , alternative medicine , pathology , optics
Methods A two‐centre, double‐blind, parallel‐group, randomized study was carried out to compare the efficacy and tolerability of racecadotril (100 mg three times daily) and placebo in 70 adult patients with acute diarrhoea. An objective criterion of antisecretory activity, stool weight, was used. Results Racecadotril produced a significant ( P = 0.025) decrease in stool weight during the first day of treatment compared with placebo, and was also associated with significantly fewer diarrhoeic stools than placebo after 1 day of treatment ( P = 0.027). Racecadotril and placebo were equally well tolerated, and the frequency of symptoms and signs was similar in both groups after 4 days of treatment. Fewer patients on racecadotril suffered from abdominal distension following treatment (5.6% vs. 18.2% on placebo). Conclusions Racecadotril acts rapidly to resolve acute diarrhoea and has an incidence of adverse events similar to that of placebo.