Source: Genetic Testing  |  Posted 9 years ago

Women with diarrhoea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) report overall satisfaction with alosetron therapy.

The majority of alosetron-treated patients also approve the therapy when referring to the five specific medication attributes they consider most important, say researchers in the United States.

Investigators from the Mayo Clinic Scottsdale in Scottsdale, Arizona, randomised 532 women to 1 milligram of alosetron b.i.d. and 269 to placebo. The women used seven-point Likert scales to rate their pre-study IBS treatment and study medication on week 12 or at their final visit.

Both overall satisfaction and satisfaction with 11 specific attributes of the medication were surveyed.

Results indicate only 10% of patients were satisfied or very satisfied overall with their pre-study IBS medication. At the end of 12 weeks of therapy, 69% of the alosetron-treated patients were satisfied or very satisfied overall. This compared with 46% of placebo patients.

On the 11 specific medication attributions surveyed, 61 to 87% of alosetron-treated patients reported satisfaction.

The women assigned favourable satisfaction ratings to the five medication attributes they considered most important: relief of urgency (68% for alosetron versus 41% for placebo), speed of relief (71% alosetron vs 40% placebo), time to return to normal activities (75% alosetron vs 49% placebo), relief of abdominal pain (62% alosetron vs 44% placebo) and prevention of return of urgency (68% alosetron vs 42% placebo).