ORIGINAL ARTICLE   

Gazzetta Medica Italiana Archivio per le Scienze Mediche 2017 December;176(12):633-9

DOI: 10.23736/S0393-3660.17.03531-8

Copyright © 2017 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

lingua: Inglese

Cough therapy in children with plant-based products: a prospective observational clinical study

Antonello ARRIGHI ✉

Private Practitioner, San Giovanni Valdarno, Arezzo, Italy

BACKGROUNDː Cough is one of the main reasons for going to the doctor, second only to locomotor disabilities. It is important thus to consider coughing as a symptom and not as a disease.
METHODSː This clinical study evaluates the effectiveness of a syrup obtained from herbal extracts versus a placebo solution, to treat cough caused by URTIs (upper respiratory tract infections) in 168 patients, aged between 3 and 12 years.
RESULTSː Patients were monitored by evaluating the reduction of cough severity, through a clinical score used by the doctor during control examinations after 2, 4, 7, and 14 days from the beginning of treatment. Tolerability of the herbal preparation was also evaluated. Patients of each group could be treated, in the opinion of the doctor, either with only syrup (monotherapy) or by combining it with other drugs (combination therapy) with the exception of cortisol, antihistamines and cough sedatives. The dosage was the one suggested by manufacturer and commonly used in clinical practice.
CONCLUSIONSː This prospective clinical study demonstrates that the syrup obtained from herbal extracts, if compared to the placebo solution, is more effective in the treatment of cough as a symptom, both when used alongside with other drugs and in monotherapy. The disappearance of cough after 7 and 14 days was statistically higher in the syrup vs. the placebo group: 71.9>15.18 after 7 days and 89.88>41.76 after 14 days. Patients also tolerated the syrup well. This shows that its large-scale use is recommend for treating cough as a symptom in URTIs.

KEY WORDS: Cough - Pediatrics - Phytotherapy - Respiratory tract infections