Clinical therapeutics
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Clinical therapeutics · Feb 2003
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study Clinical TrialA comparison of 5-day courses of dirithromycin and azithromycin in the treatment of acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Short-term use of antibiotics has become a common component of the management of acute exacerbations of chronic bronchitis (AECB), particularly in complex cases with productive cough or purulent phlegm. The macrolide antibiotics, particularly second-generation agents such as dirithromycin and azithromycin, are among the antibiotic classes frequently recommended and used to treat upper and lower respiratory infections, including AECB. ⋯ The results of this study suggest comparable clinical efficacy between 5-day courses of once-daily dirithromycin and azithromycin in acute exacerbations of COPD. There were insufficient data to permit meaningful comparison of the bacteriologic efficacy of these macrolide antibiotics.
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Clinical therapeutics · Feb 2003
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialGranisetron versus granisetron/dexamethasone combination for the treatment of nausea, retching, and vomiting after major gynecologic surgery: a randomized, double-blind study.
Granisetron, a selective 5-hydroxytryptamine3 antagonist, is effective for the treatment of patients with postoperative nausea and vomiting. Dexamethasone decreases chemotherapy-induced emesis when added to an antiemetic regimen. ⋯ In this study, the granisetron/dexamethasone combination was more effective than was granisetron alone for the management of nausea and vomiting during 0 to 3 hours after anesthesia in women undergoing major gynecologic surgery.
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Clinical therapeutics · Feb 2003
Review Comparative StudyA review of the effects of almotriptan and other triptans on clinical trial outcomes that are meaningful to patients with migraine.
Traditional end points in clinical trials of migraine therapy, such as 2-hour pain response, may not fully address the outcomes patients consider most important: rapid and sustained freedom from pain over 24 hours, and a low, placebo-like incidence of adverse events. A composite efficacy measure such as the sustained pain-free rate (no pain by 2 hours after dosing, no recurrence, no use of rescue medication from 2 to 24 hours after dosing) may be more appropriate. ⋯ Data from clinical trials suggest that almotriptan is effective and well tolerated in the treatment of acute migraine pain. Based on a sustained pain-free rate that is among the highest and an adverse-event rate that is among the lowest for the triptans, almotriptan represents a therapeutic option for the initial treatment of acute migraine with or without aura.
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Clinical therapeutics · Feb 2003
Comparative StudyA post hoc analysis of the impact on hostility and agitation of quetiapine and haloperidol among patients with schizophrenia.
Quetiapine, a drug with a broad pharmacologic profile (similar to that of clozapine), may show benefits for agitation in patients with psychoses. Also, quetiapine may be superior to placebo and either equal or superior to haloperidol in treating this symptom. Available data for other second-generation antipsychotic agents show that quetiapine may have better efficacy in improving agitation compared with haloperidol. ⋯ The data in this study suggest that quetiapine treatment has benefits for hostility and agitation among patients experiencing an acute exacerbation of schizophrenia. Furthermore, the path analysis indicated that, relative to haloperidol, quetiapine appeared to have direct effects on agitation that were independent of improvements in psychoses or overall psychopathology, as assessed by the BPRS.