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Background and Aim: Herbal products are widely used to treat patients with disorders of gut brain interaction but clinical efficacy and safety data for treatments lasting >4 weeks are widely lacking. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of 8 weeks of treatment with the herbal combination product STW 5‐II for patients with functional dyspepsia (FD) meeting Rome II criteria. We also conducted a post hoc analysis including patients meeting Rome IV criteria for FD and evaluated the effect of the G‐protein beta 3 (GNB3) subunit polymorphism (C825T) on therapeutic response. Methods: This multicenter, placebo‐controlled, double‐blind study included 272 FD patients meeting Rome II criteria in the intention‐to‐treat cohort and 266 meeting Rome IV criteria. We used the validated Gastrointestinal Symptom Score (GIS) to assess GI symptoms, defining response rate as the proportion of patients with ≥50% GIS improvement in at least three of four assessments. Results: After 8 weeks, the response rate was significantly higher in the STW 5‐II group versus placebo (61.2% vs 45.1%, P = 0.008). Mean GIS non‐significantly improved with STW 5‐II treatment (7.9 ± 4.41 vs 6.7 ± 4.91 with placebo; P = 0.07). In the Rome IV subgroup analysis, STW 5‐II yielded a better response rate (P = 0.01) versus placebo and greater postprandial distress symptom improvement (P = 0.04) versus placebo. Safety parameters did not differ between groups, and GNB3 status was not linked with therapeutic response. Conclusion: STW 5‐II is efficacious, with no observed safety signals at up to 8 weeks of treatment in patients with FD meeting Rome II or IV criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a chronic relapsing gastroduodenal disorder with limited treatment options. Herbal products, like the six-herb combination STW 5-II, can target multiple FD gastrointestinal symptoms. In this meta-analysis, we evaluated the efficacy and safety of STW 5-II for overall FD, and key symptoms, based on Rome IV criteria. Methods: We systematically screened the literature for randomized controlled clinical studies testing STW 5-II in FD. Meta-analysis was performed using data from individual patients with at least one key FD symptom (fullness, early satiety, or epigastric pain) of at least moderate severity at baseline. ANCOVA-based meta-analyses were performed on improvements in the total symptom sum score, and single symptoms, after 4 and 8 weeks. Safety data were analyzed by calculating odds ratios for all adverse events. Results: Four randomized controlled trials, including 613 patients, were identified, and two were eligible for efficacy analysis. STW 5-II significantly improved the FD symptom sum score (mean difference of 1.74 after 4 weeks and 2.07 after 8 weeks) and key FD symptoms of fullness (0.28 and 0.29), early satiety (0.25 and 0.26), and epigastric/upper abdominal pain (0.26 and 0.3). Treatment-related or severe adverse events did not differ between STW 5-II and placebo. Conclusion: The results support that STW 5-II significantly improves FD symptoms after 4 and 8 weeks of treatment with no difference in relation to safety signals compared to placebo. Thus, STW 5-II can be considered an effective and safe treatment option for FD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the acceptability of a medicine can significantly impact therapeutic outcomes, this study aimed to determine and compare the preferences of children, parents, and healthcare professionals for the most commonly used pediatric oral medicine formulations (syrup, mini-tablets, oblong tablets, round tablets) addressing all pediatric age groups, 0–<18 years (y). This survey study employed sex-, age-, and participant group-adapted questionnaires for eight cohorts of participants, i.e., children 6–<12 y, adolescents 12–<18 y, parents of children in four age groups (0–<2 y, 2–<6 y, 6–<12 y, and 12–<18 y), nurses, and pediatricians. Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis. In the age groups 0–<2 y and 2–<6 y, mini-tablets were preferred over syrup by all participants. In the age group 6–12 y, solid dosage forms were also preferred over syrup by all participants. In the age group 12–<18 y, healthcare professionals preferred solid dosage forms over syrup. Parents preferred higher amounts of mini-tablets and syrup compared to round and oblong tablets, while adolescents' preferences did not differentiate between these formulations. Based on the study results and in contrast to current practice, it is suggested to consider solid dosage forms for future age-appropriate medicinal products already for younger age groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mini-tablets are advantageous over liquid formulations in overcoming challenges related to stability, taste, and dosage. This open-label, single-dose, cross-over study investigated the acceptability and safety of drug-free, film-coated mini-tablets in children aged 1 month–6 years (stratified: 4–6 years, 2–<4 years, 1–<2 years, 6–<12 months, and 1–<6 months), and their preference for swallowing either a high quantity of 2.0 mm or a low quantity of 2.5 mm diameter mini-tablets. The primary endpoint was acceptability derived from swallowability. The secondary endpoints were investigator-observed palatability, acceptability as a composite endpoint derived from both swallowability and palatability, and safety. Of 320 children randomized, 319 completed the study. Across all tablet sizes, quantities and age groups, acceptability rates based on swallowability were high (at least 87%). Palatability was rated as "pleasant/neutral" in 96.6% of children. The acceptability rates as per the composite endpoint were at least 77% and 86% for the 2.0 mm and 2.5 mm film-coated mini-tablets, respectively. No adverse events or deaths were reported. Recruitment in the 1–<6-months group was stopped early due to coughing—evaluated as "choked on" in three children. Both 2.0 mm and 2.5 mm film-coated mini-tablets are suitable formulations for young children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims The presence of pulmonary hypertension (PH) severely aggravates the clinical course of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). To date, neither established heart failure therapies nor pulmonary vasodilators proved beneficial. This study investigated the efficacy of chronic treatment with the oral soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator riociguat in patients with PH-HFpEF. Methods and Results The phase IIb, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, multicentre DYNAMIC trial assessed riociguat in PH-HFpEF. Patients were recruited at five hospitals across Austria and Germany. Key eligibility criteria were mean pulmonary artery pressure ≥25 mmHg, pulmonary arterial wedge pressure >15 mmHg, and left ventricular ejection fraction ≥50%. Patients were randomized to oral treatment with riociguat or placebo (1:1). Patients started at 0.5 mg three times daily (TID) and were up-titrated to 1.5 mg TID. The primary efficacy endpoint was change from baseline to week 26 in cardiac output (CO) at rest, measured by right heart catheterization. Primary efficacy analyses were performed on the full analysis set. Fifty-eight patients received riociguat and 56 patients placebo. After 26 weeks, CO increased by 0.37 ± 1.263 L/min in the riociguat group and decreased by −0.11 ± 0.921 L/min in the placebo group (least-squares mean difference: 0.54 L/min, 95% confidence interval 0.112, 0.971; P  = 0.0142). Five patients dropped out due to riociguat-related adverse events but no riociguat-related serious adverse event or death occurred. Conclusion The vasodilator riociguat improved haemodynamics in PH-HFpEF. Riociguat was safe in most patients but led to more dropouts as compared to placebo and did not change clinical symptoms within the study period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] There is limited evidence for the acceptability of various drug formulations holding the potential to improve medicines administration to children. Suitable formulations need to meet the requirements of pediatric patients. Previous studies have demonstrated the acceptance of mini-tablets. Oblong tablets may carry more active ingredient content per unit than mini-tablets and could be an important alternative when the drug substance requires administration of higher doses. The primary objective was to demonstrate non-inferiority of acceptability of oblong tablets in comparison to 3 ml glucose syrup in children aged 1 to 5 years. Secondary objectives were investigation of acceptability, swallowability and palatability of mini-tablets, oblong tablets and glucose syrup in children between 1 and 5 years. An open, randomized, single dose two-way cross-over design in two parallel study arms was applied. 280 children were stratified to one of five age groups and randomized to receiving one oblong tablet (2.5 × 6 mm) in comparison either to 3 ml glucose syrup or to three mini-tablets (2 × 2 mm). Acceptability and swallowability were assessed according to pre-defined evaluation criteria. The application of the formulations was video documented to evaluate the palatability. As primary objective, non-inferiority was observed regarding acceptability of the oblong tablet compared to syrup in all age groups (84.4% vs 80.1%, difference 4,29% points with 95% CI of −3.00%,11.57%). For swallowability, superiority of the oblong tablet compared to syrup could be shown (74.5% vs. 53.2%, difference 21.26% points, 95% CI of 11.29%, 31.23%). Regarding palatability, <10% of children demonstrated unpleasant reaction after intake of the oblong tablet or mini-tablets as graded by both raters, however, in contrast up to 40% of children after intake of syrup. Oblong tablets are a promising, safe alternative to liquid drug formulations and administration of multiple mini-tablets in children. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study was a comparative investigation of the influence of concomitant food intake on the bioavailability of two nifedipine-containing controlled-release formulations. Adalat® OROS and CORAL® were compared in a randomised, non-blind, four-way crossover design in 24 healthy, male subjects after single dose administration following a high fat American breakfast or an overnight fast of 12 h, respectively. Plasma samples were withdrawn until 48 h post-dose. In the fasted state, the bioavailability (AUC and Cmax values) was lower for CORAL® than for Adalat® OROS. Under fed conditions, differences in bioavailability between both products were markedly increased. With respect to the therapeutic use of both products, the most important finding was the significant dose-dumping effect observed after fed administration of CORAL®, resulting in nifedipine plasma concentrations of nearly three- to four-fold in 11 of 24 volunteers. The mean ratio of Cmax was 235% comparing CORAL® with Adalat® OROS under these conditions. The formulation-dependent food interaction observed in this study may be therapeutically relevant, especially in the case of changing administration conditions or switching from one product to the other. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background and Aim: Herbal products are widely used to treat patients with disorders of gut brain interaction but clinical efficacy and safety data for treatments lasting >4 weeks are widely lacking. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of 8 weeks of treatment with the herbal combination product STW 5-II for patients with functional dyspepsia (FD) meeting Rome II criteria. We also conducted a post hoc analysis including patients meeting Rome IV criteria for FD and evaluated the effect of the G-protein beta 3 (GNB3) subunit polymorphism (C825T) on therapeutic response., Methods: This multicenter, placebo-controlled, double-blind study included 272 FD patients meeting Rome II criteria in the intention-to-treat cohort and 266 meeting Rome IV criteria. We used the validated Gastrointestinal Symptom Score (GIS) to assess GI symptoms, defining response rate as the proportion of patients with ≥50% GIS improvement in at least three of four assessments., Results: After 8 weeks, the response rate was significantly higher in the STW 5-II group versus placebo (61.2% vs 45.1%, P  = 0.008). Mean GIS non-significantly improved with STW 5-II treatment (7.9 ± 4.41 vs 6.7 ± 4.91 with placebo; P  = 0.07). In the Rome IV subgroup analysis, STW 5-II yielded a better response rate ( P  = 0.01) versus placebo and greater postprandial distress symptom improvement ( P  = 0.04) versus placebo. Safety parameters did not differ between groups, and GNB3 status was not linked with therapeutic response., Conclusion: STW 5-II is efficacious, with no observed safety signals at up to 8 weeks of treatment in patients with FD meeting Rome II or IV criteria., (© 2024 Steigerwald Arzneimittelwerk GmbH and The Authors. JGH Open published by Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Foundation and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.)

Background: Lactulose is approved for the symptomatic treatment of constipation, a gastrointestinal (GI) complication common in individuals with diabetes. Lactulose products contain carbohydrate impurities ( e.g., lactose, fructose, galactose), which occur during the lactulose manufacturing process. These impurities may affect the blood glucose levels of individuals with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) using lactulose for the treatment of mild constipation. A previous study in healthy subjects revealed no increase in blood glucose levels after oral lactulose intake. However, it is still unclear whether the intake of lactulose increases blood glucose levels in individuals with diabetes., Aim: To evaluate the blood glucose profile after oral lactulose intake in mildly constipated, non-insulin-dependent subjects with T2DM in an outpatient setting., Methods: This prospective, double-blind, randomized, controlled, single-center trial was conducted at the Clinical Research Center at the Medical University of Graz, Austria, in 24 adult Caucasian mildly constipated, non-insulin-dependent subjects with T2DM. Eligible subjects were randomized and assigned to one of six treatment sequences, each consisting of four treatments stratified by sex using an incomplete block design. Subjects received a single dose of 20 g or 30 g lactulose (crystal and liquid formulation), water as negative control or 30 g glucose as positive control. Capillary blood glucose concentrations were measured over a period of 180 min post dose. The primary endpoint was the baseline-corrected area under the curve of blood glucose concentrations over the complete assessment period [AUC baseline&#95;c (0-180 min) ]. Quantitative comparisons were performed for both lactulose doses and formulations vs water for the equal lactulose dose vs glucose, as well as for liquid lactulose vs crystal lactulose. Safety parameters included GI tolerability, which was assessed at 180 min and 24 h post dose, and adverse events occurring up to 24 h post dose., Results: In 24 randomized and analyzed subjects blood glucose concentration-time curves after intake of 20 g and 30 g lactulose were almost identical to those after water intake for both lactulose formulations despite the different amounts of carbohydrate impurities (≤ 3.0% for crystals and approx. 30% for liquid). The primary endpoint [AUC baseline&#95;c (0-180 min) ] was not significantly different between lactulose and water regardless of lactulose dose and formulation. Also with regard to all secondary endpoints lactulose formulations showed comparable results to water with one exception concerning maximum glucose level. A minor increase in maximum blood glucose was observed after the 30 g dose, liquid lactulose, in comparison to water with a mean treatment difference of 0.63 mmol/L (95% confidence intervals: 0.19, 1.07). Intake of 30 g glucose significantly increased all blood glucose endpoints vs 30 g liquid and crystal lactulose, respectively (all P < 0.0001). No differences in blood glucose response were observed between the different lactulose formulations. As expected, lactulose increased the number of bowel movements and was generally well tolerated. Subjects experienced only mild to moderate GI symptoms due to the laxative action of lactulose., Conclusion: Blood glucose AUC baseline&#95;c (0-180 min) levels in mildly constipated, non-insulin dependent subjects with T2DM are not affected by the carbohydrate impurities contained in 20 g and 30 g crystal or liquid lactulose formulations., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: The study was sponsored by Fresenius Kabi Deutschland GmbH, Germany. The sponsor’s representatives contributed to the study design and the selection of outcome measures before study start but had no role in study execution or data collection, or data analyses. All other authors declare no potential conflicts of interest related to this paper., (©The Author(s) 2021. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.)

Aim: To investigate possible changes of blood glucose levels after oral intake of lactulose in healthy subjects., Methods: The study was performed as prospective, randomized, two-part study with 4-way cross-over design with n = 12 in each study arm. Capillary blood glucose levels were determined over a time period of 180 min after intake of a single dose of 10 g or 20 g lactulose provided as crystal or liquid formulation. During the manufacturing process of lactulose, impurities with sugars ( e.g ., lactose, fructose, galactose) occur. Water and 20 g glucose were used as control and reference. Because lactulose is used as a functional food ingredient, it may also be consumed by people with impaired glucose tolerance, including diabetics. Therefore, it is of interest to determine whether the described carbohydrate impurities may increase blood glucose levels after ingestion., Results: The blood glucose concentration-time curves after intake of 10 g lactulose, 20 g lactulose, and water were almost identical. None of the three applications showed any changes in blood glucose levels. After intake of 20 g glucose, blood glucose concentration increased by approximately 3 mmol/L (mean C max = 8.3 mmol/L), reaching maximum levels after approximately 30 min and returning to baseline within approximately 90 min, which was significantly different to the corresponding 20 g lactulose formulations ( P < 0.0001). Comparing the two lactulose formulations, crystals and liquid, in the dosage of 10 g and 20 g, there was no difference in the blood glucose profile and calculated pharmacokinetic parameters despite the different amounts of carbohydrate impurities (1.5% for crystals and 26.45% for liquid). Anyhow, the absolute amount of single sugars was low with 0.3 g in crystals and 5.29 g in liquid formulation in the 20 g dosages. Lactulose was well tolerated by most volunteers, and only some reported mild to moderate mainly gastrointestinal side effects., Conclusion: The unchanged blood glucose levels after lactulose intake in healthy subjects suggest its safe use in subjects with impaired glucose tolerance., Competing Interests: Conflict-of-interest statement: The study was sponsored by Fresenius Kabi Deutschland GmbH. The sponsors contributed to discussion about study design and selection of outcome measures prior to study start. Study realization, data analysis and report generation were independently undertaken by BioTeSys GmbH and M.A.R.C.O. GmbH and Co. KG. The authors from BioTeSys GmbH and M.A.R.C.O. GmbH and Co. KG declare that there is no conflict of interest regarding the publication of this paper.

Unlabelled: Hydroxyethyl starches (HES) are almost exclusively excreted glomerularly, in part after hydrolysis by amylase. HES 130/0.4 (Voluven; Fresenius Kabi Deutschland GmbH, Bad Homburg, Germany) was developed to improve pharmacokinetics whereas preserving the efficacy of volume effect. We studied the dependency of pharmacokinetics of HES 130/0.4 on renal function. Nineteen volunteers with stable, non-anuric renal dysfunction, ranging from almost normal creatinine clearance (CL(cr)) to severe renal impairment (mean CL(cr): 50.6 mL. min(-1). 1.73 m(-2)), were given a single infusion of 500 mL 6% HES 130/0.4 over 30 min. HES plasma concentrations were determined until 72 h, urinary excretion until 72-96 h. CL(cr) had been obtained at least twice before and twice after dosing. Standard pharmacokinetic calculations and regression analysis were performed. Area under the time concentration curve (AUC(0-inf)) clearly depended on renal function comparing subjects with CL(cr) < 50 with those with CL(cr) > or =50 (ratio 1.73). Peak concentration (C(max), 4.34 mg/mL) as well as terminal half-life (16.1 h, model independent) were not affected by renal impairment. At CL(cr) > or =30, 59% of the drug could be retrieved in urine, versus 51% at CL(cr) 15-<30. The mean molecular weight of HES in plasma was 62,704 d at 30 min, showing lower values with increased renal impairment (P = 0.04). Pre-dose amylase concentrations inversely correlated with baseline CL(cr). Residual HES plasma concentrations after 24 h were small in all subjects (< or =0.6 mg/mL). We conclude that HES 130/0.4 (500 mL 6%) can be safely administered to patients even with severe renal impairment, as long as urine flow is preserved, without plasma accumulation., Implications: Dependency of the pharmacokinetics of hydroxyethyl starch 130/0.4 on renal function was studied. The area under the time concentration curve increased moderately with more severe renal dysfunction; however, small plasma concentrations were observed after 24 h. Terminal half-life and peak concentration remained unaffected by renal impairment.