Clinical therapeutics
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Clinical therapeutics · Jun 1999
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical TrialAnalgesic efficacy of the cyclooxygenase-2-specific inhibitor rofecoxib in post-dental surgery pain: a randomized, controlled trial.
Previous data have suggested that rofecoxib, a cyclooxygenase (COX)-2-specific inhibitor, had analgesic effects similar to those of the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs when tested in the post-dental surgery pain model. The objective of this parallel-group, double-masked, randomized, placebo- and active comparator-controlled clinical trial was to assess more fully the analgesic efficacy of rofecoxib in the treatment of postoperative dental pain. After dental surgery, 151 patients (50.3% women; mean age, 18.3 years; 93.4% white) experiencing moderate-to-severe pain were to receive a single dose of placebo, rofecoxib 50 mg, or ibuprofen 400 mg. ⋯ The results of this study demonstrated that rofecoxib 50 mg was more effective than placebo on all measures of analgesic efficacy. Rofecoxib 50 mg exhibited overall analgesic effects, onset of analgesia, and peak analgesic effects that were not significantly different from those of ibuprofen 400 mg, with a significantly longer duration of action (P < 0.05). We concluded that rofecoxib was efficacious in the treatment of postoperative dental pain and that COX-2-derived prostanoids play a role in treatment of the pain associated with dental surgery.
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Clinical therapeutics · Mar 1999
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical TrialTreatment of menstruation-associated migraine with the nonprescription combination of acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine: results from three randomized, placebo-controlled studies.
This retrospective study sought to examine the benefits of the nonprescription combination of acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine (AAC; Excedrin Migraine, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, New York, New York) for the treatment of menstruation-associated migraine compared with migraine not associated with menses. Data were derived from 3 double-masked, randomized, placebo-controlled, single-dose trials enrolling subjects who met the International Headache Society's diagnostic criteria for migraine with or without aura. Subjects with incapacitating disability (attacks requiring bed rest >50% of the time) and those who usually experienced vomiting > or =20% of the time were excluded. ⋯ The proportion of subjects who had 1 or more adverse experiences was significantly higher among those receiving AAC than among those receiving placebo (menstruation-associated migraine: AAC 26.4%, placebo 12.6%, P = 0.025; nonmenstruation-associated migraine: AAC 18.6%, placebo 11.4%, P = 0.005). Adverse experiences were similar in type and severity to those previously associated with single doses of acetaminophen, aspirin, or caffeine. Thus the nonprescription combination of AAC was highly effective in treating the pain, disability, and associated symptoms of both menstruation-associated migraine and migraine not associated with menses.
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Clinical therapeutics · Mar 1999
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study Clinical TrialComparison of an orally disintegrating ondansetron tablet with the conventional ondansetron tablet for cyclophosphamide-induced emesis in cancer patients: a multicenter, double-masked study. Ondansetron Orally Disintegrating Tablet Emesis Study Group.
A total of 427 cancer patients receiving cyclophosphamide chemotherapy participated in this multicenter, double-masked, double-dummy, parallel-group, randomized study comparing the antiemetic efficacy and safety of an 8-mg conventional ondansetron tablet (OT, n = 212) taken twice daily with an 8-mg orally disintegrating ondansetron tablet (ODT, n = 215) taken twice daily for 3 days. In the primary efficacy analysis, complete or major control of emesis (0 to 2 emetic episodes) between days 1 and 3 was seen in 80% of OT and 78% of ODT patients. The 90% confidence interval for the differences between treatments was -8.6% to 4.4% (defined interval of equivalence, +/-15%), showing that the formulations were equivalent. ⋯ The taste of ODT was acceptable to the majority of patients (89%) who received it. OT and ODT were both well tolerated. Thus 8 mg ODT twice daily represents a palatable, well-tolerated, and effective antiemetic treatment for the control of cyclophosphamide-induced emesis and nausea and provides equivalent treatment to OT 8 mg twice daily.
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Clinical therapeutics · Feb 1999
ReviewTrastuzumab, a recombinant DNA-derived humanized monoclonal antibody, a novel agent for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer.
Amplification of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 protein (HER2) in primary breast carcinomas has been shown to correlate with poor clinical prognosis for certain patients. Trastuzumab (Herceptin, Genentech, Inc., South San Francisco, California) is a highly purified recombinant DNA-derived humanized monoclonal immunoglobulin G1 kappa antibody that binds with high affinity and specificity to the extracellular domain of the HER2 receptor. In vitro and in vivo preclinical studies have shown that administration of trastuzumab alone or in combination with paclitaxel or carboplatin significantly inhibits the growth of breast tumor-derived cell lines that overexpress the HER2 gene product. ⋯ The most common adverse effects attributed to trastuzumab in clinical studies were fever and chills, pain, asthenia, nausea, vomiting, increased cough, diarrhea, headache, dyspnea, infection, rhinitis, and insomnia. Trastuzumab in combination with chemotherapy can lead to cardiotoxicity, leukopenia, anemia, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and infection. Trastuzumab has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration as a single agent for the treatment of patients who have metastatic breast cancer involving overexpression of the HER2 protein and who have received 1 or more chemotherapy regimens; in combination with paclitaxel, it has been approved for the treatment of such patients who have not received chemotherapy.
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Clinical therapeutics · Jan 1999
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Clinical TrialEfficacy and safety of a loading-dose regimen versus a no-loading-dose regimen of metrifonate in the symptomatic treatment of Alzheimer's disease: a randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled trial. Metrifonate Study Group.
This prospective, randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled, parallel-group study assessed the safety and efficacy of 2 dosage regimens of once-daily metrifonate in patients with probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) of mild-to-moderate severity. A total of 395 patients were randomized to receive placebo (n = 134) or metrifonate in 1 of 2 regimens. The loading-dose group (n = 133) received a daily loading dose of metrifonate 100 mg or 150 mg (by weight) for 2 weeks, followed by a daily maintenance dose of metrifonate 50 mg for 4 weeks; the no-loading-dose group (n = 128) received the daily maintenance dose of metrifonate 50 mg for 6 weeks. ⋯ For the MMSE, CIBIS-Plus, and ADAS-Noncog, treatment differences for both groups versus placebo did not reach statistical significance at either week 4 or 6. Assessment of the frequency of adverse events in metrifonate-treated patients revealed that the no-loading-dose regimen was better tolerated than the loading-dose regimen. Given the overall similar efficacy and more favorable safety profile associated with the no-loading-dose regimen versus the loading-dose regimen observed in this study, the no-loading-dose regimen appears to be the better strategy for initiating metrifonate treatment in patients with probable AD of mild-to-moderate severity.