A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of paroxetine controlled-release in irritable bowel syndrome.
BACKGROUND: Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a functional gastrointestinal (GI) disease that causes significant impairment in quality of life and accounts for $8 billion per year to the healthcare system and loss of productivity in the workplace. OBJECTIVE: The authors examined the efficacy and safety of paroxetine controlled-release (paroxetine-CR) in patients with IBS. METHOD: Seventy-two patients with IBS participated in a 12-week, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study of paroxetine-CR (12.5 mg-50 mg/day). Efficacy was measured by Composite Pain Scores (primary outcome) and the Clinical Global Impression-Improvement (CGI-I) and Severity (CGI-S) ratings. RESULTS: In intent-to-treat analyses, there were no significant differences between paroxetine-CR (N=36) and placebo (N=36) on reduction in Composite Pain Scores, although the proportion of responders on CGI-I was significantly higher in the paroxetine-CR group. The treatment was well tolerated. CONCLUSION: The study did not demonstrate a statistically significant benefit for paroxetine-CR over placebo on the primary outcome measure, although there was improvement in secondary outcome measures. Overall, paroxetine-CR seems to have potential benefit in IBS. Studies with adequate samples may clarify the role of paroxetine-CR in IBS.
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- Treatment Outcome
- Psychiatry
- Placebos
- Paroxetine
- Pain Measurement
- Middle Aged
- Male
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Humans
- Female
Citation
Published In
DOI
EISSN
Publication Date
Volume
Issue
Start / End Page
Location
Related Subject Headings
- Treatment Outcome
- Psychiatry
- Placebos
- Paroxetine
- Pain Measurement
- Middle Aged
- Male
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Humans
- Female