WITHDRAWN: Antihistamines for the common cold.

Background: Although antihistamines are prescribed in large quantities for the common cold, there is little evidence as to whether these drugs are effective.

Objectives: To assess in patients with a common cold the effects of antihistamines in alleviating nasal symptoms, or the shortening the duration of illness.

Search Strategy: We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library, 2002, issue 4), which contains the Acute Respiratory Infections Group's Specilaized Register; MEDLINE (1966 to February 2003); and EMBASE (1987 to December 2002).