A Randomized Controlled Trial to Assess the Effect of Lidocaine Administered via Throat Spray and Nebulization in Patients with Refractory Chronic Cough.
THE JOURNAL OF ALLERGY AND CLINICAL IMMUNOLOGY-IN PRACTICE 2020;
9:1640-1647. [PMID:
33259976 DOI:
10.1016/j.jaip.2020.11.037]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2020] [Revised: 10/28/2020] [Accepted: 11/14/2020] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Refractory chronic cough (RCC) is a debilitating condition for which there are no licensed treatments. Lidocaine is a nonselective inhibitor of voltage-gated sodium channels with potential antitussive effects, but randomized placebo-controlled studies evaluating its efficacy in RCC are lacking.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the efficacy of nebulized lidocaine and lidocaine throat spray versus matched placebos in RCC.
METHODS
This was a randomized, double-blind, double-dummy, placebo-controlled, 3-way crossover study, comparing the effect of single doses of nebulized lidocaine with lidocaine delivered by a throat spray and matched placebo. The primary end point was cough frequency over the 10 hours following treatment. Secondary end points were visual analog scale scores for urge-to-cough and cough severity; an exploratory analysis evaluated hourly cough rates up to 5 hours after treatment.
RESULTS
Twenty-six subjects with RCC were recruited (22 females; mean age, 53.5 ± 12.1 years; FEV1 %predicted, 105.2 ± 16.8 L; forced vital capacity %predicted, 112.4 ± 18 L). Lidocaine throat spray, but not nebulized lidocaine, significantly reduced 10-hour cough frequency as compared with placebo (throat spray, 22.6 coughs/h; nebulization, 26.9 coughs/h; and placebos, 27.6 coughs/h; P = .04,). Lidocaine throat spray showed the greatest effect on cough compared with placebo in the first hour after administration (31.7 coughs/h vs 74.2 coughs/h; P = .004). Both nebulizer and spray treatments significantly alleviated urge-to-cough and cough severity visual analog scale scores compared with placebo (P < .05). There were no serious adverse events associated with lidocaine therapy.
CONCLUSIONS
Lidocaine throat spray was effective in reducing cough frequency in patients with RCC. Voltage-gated sodium channel inhibitors applied to pharynx have potential as therapies for RCC.
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