Propinox in intestinal colic: multicenter randomized prospective double-blind study of three doses of propinox vs. placebo in acute intestinal colic pain.

The aim of this double-blind study was to assess the efficacy and tolerability of propinox administered i.v. and to establish a dose-response relationship according to three dose levels (10 mg, 20 mg and 30 mg), vs. placebo in patients with moderate-to-severe acute intestinal colic pain. Four hundred patients (100 per treatment group) were included and allocated to the following treatment groups: propinox 10 mg, 20 mg, 30 mg and placebo. All treatments induced significant and progressive pain reduction as from the 20 min evaluation of 20.3% in the placebo group, 45% in the group treated with propinox 10 mg; 52% in the group receiving propinox 20 mg and 56% in the propinox 30 mg group. Statistical comparison showed differences between placebo and the three active doses as well as between propinox 10 mg and the 20 mg and 30 mg doses. The 20 min evaluation revealed that 40% of patients receiving placebo had to be excluded from the study due to lack of efficacy; the percentage of which was significantly higher compared with those observed with the three doses of propinox ranging between 10% and 13%. The 120 min evaluation revealed that 47.7% of patients treated with propinox 10 mg were free from pain vs. 68.8% and 73.5% of those receiving 20 mg and 30 mg, respectively. These percentages were considerably higher than the 15% found with placebo. Statistical analysis revealed significant differences between the 10 mg vs. the 20 mg and 30 mg groups with not differences between the latter doses. No differences in blood pressure or heart rate were found among treatments. The incidence of mouth dryness was significantly more frequent with the 20 mg and 30 mg doses of propinox than with the placebo or the 10 mg dose.

Propinox in biliary colic: a multicenter, randomized, prospective and parallel double-blind study of three doses of propinox versus placebo in acute biliary colic pain.

The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and tolerance of propinox administered i.v., and establish a dose-response relation according to three dose levels (10, 20 and 30 mg), vs. placebo in patients with moderate to severe acute biliary pain. Three hundred and fifty patients were included: 85 received placebo treatment, 81 were treated with propinox 10 mg, 91 with propinox 20 mg and 93 received propinox 30 mg. Spontaneous pain intensity was assessed according to a visual analog and a verbal scale before treatment and 20, 60 and 120 min after. All treatments induced significant and progressive pain reduction at all controls, but patients treated with 20 and 30 mg of propinox showed significantly lower pain intensity after 120 min compared to the placebo group. The last control revealed that 28% of patients receiving placebo had no pain while 60% of patients treated with propinox 30 mg reported absence of pain with a statistically significant difference (p < 0.001). All treatments were very well tolerated and there were no dropouts due to adverse events. Mouth dryness was the adverse effect occurring with a significantly higher frequency than that observed with placebo although it was only seen in patients treated with 20 mg and 30 mg active doses. The results of this study showed that propinox was an effective drug in the treatment of moderate to severe colic pain of biliary origin. Concerning efficacy and side effects, a clear dose-response relation was observed; the 20 mg and 30 mg doses being significantly superior to placebo.