Controlled trial of an ankle support (Malleotrain) in acute ankle injuries.

A randomized, controlled parallel-group trial has assessed 14 days' use of a new ankle support (Malleotrain, Bauerfeind, Aldershot, UK) in 220 patients (118 Malleotrain, 102 control group) with acute ankle injuries. Self-assessed pain levels were significantly lower in the group using Malleotrain at the end of the trial (P less than 0.05), as were median times taken for reduction of symptom scores to 10% (P less than 0.

Controlled trial of a back support ('Lumbotrain') in patients with non-specific low back pain.

A randomized, controlled, parallel-group clinical trial was carried out in general practice to assess the clinical efficacy of a new back support ('Lumbotrain') compared with 'standard therapy' of advice on rest and lifestyle in the treatment of patients with non-specific low back pain. A total of 216 patients entered this study (111 'Lumbotrain' group, 105 control group). All patients were allowed to take 1 g paracetamol up to 4-times daily if necessary for control of pain.

Controlled trial of an elbow support ('Epitrain') in patients with acute painful conditions of the elbow: a pilot study.

A randomized, controlled, parallel-group study was undertaken to assess the clinical efficacy of a new elbow support ('Epitrain') compared with a standard elasticated tubular stockinette support ('Tubigrip') in 35 patients with acute painful elbow disorders. On entry, patients had a clinical examination, including measurement of the range of active and passive movement of the affected joint, and were allocated to one or other treatment group (19 to 'Epitrain', 16 to control). All patients were allowed to take 1g paracetamol up to 4-times daily if necessary for the control of pain.

Randomized crossover trial of isosorbide mononitrate (Elantan 20) and slow-release glyceryl trinitrate in the treatment of angina pectoris.

An open, randomized, comparative crossover clinical trial was carried out to compare the clinical efficacy of 20 mg isosorbide mononitrate 3-times daily and 6.4 mg sustained-release glyceryl trinitrate 3-times daily in the treatment of angina pectoris. Fifty patients entered the trial and 48 patients completed.

An open study of oat bran meal biscuits ('Lejfibre') in the treatment of constipation in the elderly.

Fifty elderly patients consulting their general practitioner with the complaint of constipation were entered into an open trial to assess the benefit on their symptoms of adding bran biscuits ('Lejfibre') twice daily to their diet. Patients were followed-up over 12 weeks. Treatment caused a marked improvement in bowel frequency, stool consistency and pain on defaecation and no patients complained of side-effects.

Mixed anxiety/depressive illness in general practice. A therapeutic comparison of nomifensine with fluphenazine/nortriptyline.

The effect of the dopamine agonist antidepressant drug, nomifensine, on mixed anxiety/depressive states in general practice was assessed by means of a double-blind comparison with a standard fluphenazine/nortriptyline preparation. 57 patients were randomly allocated to 4 weeks' treatment with either nomifensine 25-50 mg taken three times daily, or a tablet containing 1.5 mg fluphenazine with 30 mg nortriptyline (Motipress) taken once daily.

A comparative study of phentermine and diethylpropion in the treatment of obese patients in general practice.

A study was carried out in general practice to compare the effectiveness and tolerance of phentermine and diethylpropion in helping patients more than 20% above their desirable weight to lose weight. Patients were allocated at random to receive either one 30 mg capsule of phentermine (50 patients) or one 75 mg tablet of diethylpropion (49 patients) daily over a period of 12 weeks. They were also asked to restrict their calorie intake to 1500 calories per day.

Doctor's versus patient's judgement in the assessment of mixed anxiety/depressive illness. Implications for measurement of therapeutic response.

The relationship of doctors' assessments to their patients' self-assessments was examined in a double-blind comparison of Motipress and Anafranil in patients suffering from mixed anxiety/depressive states. Significant differences between doctors' ratings were revealed which were largely parallelled by their patients' self-ratings done independently, suggesting differences between subgroups of patients within the whole population. Appropriate statistical analyses eliminated these factors in the data and showed that they did not affect the conclusions of a conventional statistical analysis of the two treatment groups as a whole; there were no significant differences between the major improvements associated with each treatment.

Once daily flupenthixol in the treatment of elderly depressed patients: a multi-centre trial in general practice.

Ninety-five elderly depressed patients were entered into an open trial of 0.5 to 1.0 mg flupenthixol dihydrochloride, as a single daily dose in the morning.

A double-blind study comparing cefaclor and amoxycillin in the treatment of respiratory tract infections in general practice.

A prospective double-blind study was carried out to compare the efficacy of intermittent versus continuous levels of beta-lactam antibiotics. Two hundred and ninety-eight patients attending their general practitioner and requiring treatment for respiratory tract infections were randomly allocated to receive either 250 mg cefaclor 3-times daily (intermittent) or 500 mg amoxycillin 3-times daily (continuous). By most of the parameters used to assess outcomes, the group on cefaclor did better than the group on amoxycillin, although in no case was the difference statistically significant.

Treatment of infected dermatoses: a randomized, double-blind clinical trial in general practice.

A double-blind, randomized trial was carried out in 52 patients with infected dermatoses to compare the efficacy and tolerance of two topical antibiotic/steroid combinations in cream formulations, one containing triamcinolone acetonide, neomycin sulphate and undecenoic acid ('Silderm') and the other triamcinolone acetonide, neomycin sulphate, nystatin and gramicidin. Patients applied the cream 3-times daily for 7 days. Assessments carried out before and after treatment showed that the 'Silderm' formulation was the more effective of the two preparations in reducing the extent of lesion, cosmetic disfigurement and irritation, and patients reported a greater improvement in their condition than did those on the other cream.

Single daily dose treatment of anxiety with clobazam or dipotassium clorazepate.

1 Forty-four clinically anxious patients entered a comparative double-blind trial of clobazam 20 mg, clobazam 30 mg and dipotassium clorazepate 15 mg, all drugs given as a single dose at night. 2 Assessment by the Hamilton Anxiety Scale, Morbid Anxiety Inventory (Salkind) and a Visual Analogue Scale showed a statistically significant improvement for all treatment groups after 2 weeks, with continued improvement after a further 2 weeks. 3 Daytime drowsiness was the commonest side-effect in all treatment groups but there was a tendency for a lower incidence in patients on clobazam.

A general practice assessment of Locabiotal in the treatment of upper respiratory tract infections.

An open clinical trial of Locabiotal, in which the antibiotic, fusafungine, is presented in a micronized aerosol was performed in general practice. One hundred and ten patients suffering from upper respiratory infections without associated hyperpyrexia or toxic symptoms were treated for 7 days. There was a marked improvement in the symptoms rated during the first 48 hours.