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Sertraline in symptomatic chronic breathlessness : a double blind, randomised trial

Currow, David C. ; Ekström, Magnus LU orcid ; Louw, Sandra ; Hill, Julie ; Fazekas, Belinda ; Clark, Katherine ; Davidson, Patricia M. ; McDonald, Christine ; Sajkov, Dimitar and McCaffrey, Nikki , et al. (2019) In The European respiratory journal 53(1).
Abstract

Does sertraline provide symptomatic relief for chronic breathlessness in people with advanced disease whose underlying cause(s) are optimally treated?223 participants with chronic breathlessness (modified Medical Research Council breathlessness scale ≥2) who had optimal treatment of underlying cause(s) were randomised 1:1 to sertraline 25-100 mg (titrated upwards over 9 days) or placebo for 4 weeks. The primary outcome was the proportion who had an improvement in intensity of current breathlessness >15% from baseline on a 100-mm visual analogue scale.The proportion of people responding to sertraline was similar to placebo for current breathlessness on days 26-28 (OR 1.00, 95% CI 0.71-1.40) and for other measures of breathlessness.... (More)

Does sertraline provide symptomatic relief for chronic breathlessness in people with advanced disease whose underlying cause(s) are optimally treated?223 participants with chronic breathlessness (modified Medical Research Council breathlessness scale ≥2) who had optimal treatment of underlying cause(s) were randomised 1:1 to sertraline 25-100 mg (titrated upwards over 9 days) or placebo for 4 weeks. The primary outcome was the proportion who had an improvement in intensity of current breathlessness >15% from baseline on a 100-mm visual analogue scale.The proportion of people responding to sertraline was similar to placebo for current breathlessness on days 26-28 (OR 1.00, 95% CI 0.71-1.40) and for other measures of breathlessness. Quality of life in the sertraline arm had a higher likelihood of improving than in the placebo arm over the 4 weeks (OR 0.21, 95% CI 0.01-0.41; p=0.044). No differences in performance status, anxiety and depression, or survival were observed. Adverse event rates were similar between arms.Sertraline does not appear to provide any benefit over placebo in the symptomatic relief of chronic breathlessness in this patient population.

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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
The European respiratory journal
volume
53
issue
1
article number
1801270
publisher
European Respiratory Society
external identifiers
  • pmid:30361250
  • scopus:85060134022
ISSN
1399-3003
DOI
10.1183/13993003.01270-2018
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
72a12bd1-1c54-4834-9871-786586e03ead
date added to LUP
2019-01-29 15:16:59
date last changed
2024-03-18 23:55:01
@article{72a12bd1-1c54-4834-9871-786586e03ead,
  abstract     = {{<p>Does sertraline provide symptomatic relief for chronic breathlessness in people with advanced disease whose underlying cause(s) are optimally treated?223 participants with chronic breathlessness (modified Medical Research Council breathlessness scale ≥2) who had optimal treatment of underlying cause(s) were randomised 1:1 to sertraline 25-100 mg (titrated upwards over 9 days) or placebo for 4 weeks. The primary outcome was the proportion who had an improvement in intensity of current breathlessness &gt;15% from baseline on a 100-mm visual analogue scale.The proportion of people responding to sertraline was similar to placebo for current breathlessness on days 26-28 (OR 1.00, 95% CI 0.71-1.40) and for other measures of breathlessness. Quality of life in the sertraline arm had a higher likelihood of improving than in the placebo arm over the 4 weeks (OR 0.21, 95% CI 0.01-0.41; p=0.044). No differences in performance status, anxiety and depression, or survival were observed. Adverse event rates were similar between arms.Sertraline does not appear to provide any benefit over placebo in the symptomatic relief of chronic breathlessness in this patient population.</p>}},
  author       = {{Currow, David C. and Ekström, Magnus and Louw, Sandra and Hill, Julie and Fazekas, Belinda and Clark, Katherine and Davidson, Patricia M. and McDonald, Christine and Sajkov, Dimitar and McCaffrey, Nikki and Doogue, Matthew and Abernethy, Amy P. and Agar, Meera}},
  issn         = {{1399-3003}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  publisher    = {{European Respiratory Society}},
  series       = {{The European respiratory journal}},
  title        = {{Sertraline in symptomatic chronic breathlessness : a double blind, randomised trial}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1183/13993003.01270-2018}},
  doi          = {{10.1183/13993003.01270-2018}},
  volume       = {{53}},
  year         = {{2019}},
}