Posted on 11/04/2023 9:32:56 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
For patients with recurrent bleeding due to small-intestinal angiodysplasia (SIA), thalidomide treatment results in a reduction in bleeding, according to a study.
Huimin Chen, M.D. and colleagues examined the efficacy and safety of thalidomide for the treatment of recurrent bleeding due to SIA in a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. A total of 150 patients with recurrent bleeding due to SIA were randomly assigned to thalidomide at an oral daily dose of 100 mg (51 patients) or 50 mg (49 patients) or placebo (50 patients) for four months.
The researchers found that the percentages of patients with an effective response, defined as at least a 50 percent reduction in the number of bleeding episodes during the year after the end of treatment, were 68.6, 51.0, and 16.0 percent, respectively, in the 100-mg thalidomide group, 50-mg thalidomide group, and placebo group, respectively. The secondary end point results supported those of the primary end point.
Overall, the thalidomide groups more often had adverse events, including specific events of constipation, somnolence, limb numbness, peripheral edema, dizziness, and elevated liver-enzyme levels.
"The incidence and volume of blood transfusion, the percentage of patients who were hospitalized for bleeding, the number of hospitalizations for bleeding, and the duration of hospital stays all appeared to be lower in the thalidomide groups than in the placebo group," the authors write.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Thalidomide is available, but you may remember birth defect issues with it.
Thalidomide!! I can’t hear the name of that drug without seeing the multitude of profoundly deformed children the world found out about some 50+ years ago.
Apparently, it can be helpful in specific circumstances.
I’m very surprised the name was not changed, but that might be the chemical compound name, vs generic.
Thalidomide is an interesting case. I am surprised to learn that people are still working with it, but it was always good at what it was supposed to do. It has been many years since I read up on it, but when last I checked the assessment was that Thalidomide was a human-specific mutagenic agent. It had passed its animal trials, and the incidence of adverse side effects was low enough that it passed its human trials as well. It wasn’t until it was widely distributed that enough cases emerged to allow clinicians to spot a pattern. And that took some time.
Huh. Had no idea they still made it.
I took Thalidimide for about a week, maybe 10 days. Made me nauseous and dizzy, fell and broke a wrist. Apparently, it is therapeutic for the skin and I have an auto-immune disease affecting the skin.
Prescribing doctors must be registered with whatever gov’t agency to dispense, patients must sign forms stating that they are on birth control (or had hysterectomies), women of child-bearing age must have monthly pregnancy tests in order for the pharmacy to dispense.
Thalidomide is used for multiple myeloma, and in Leprosy.
I saw the name Thalidomide and immediately thought of the birth defects. I remember those days.
What? This stuff didnt cause enough heartache last century? Were gonna test it some more and make sure!!
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