Comparative evaluation of safety and efficacy of oral Rupatadine with oral Fexofenadine in patients of seasonal allergic rhinitis

Year : 2016 | Volume : 4 | Issue : 3 Page : 12 - 16

Sailaxmi V¹,Vibha Rani²

¹ Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Pratima Institute of Medical Sciences, Karimnagar, Telangana,²Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Malla Reddy Medical College For Women, Hyderabad, Telangana

Address for correspondence: Dr. V. Sailaxmi, Assistant Professor,Department of Pharmacology, Pratima Institute of Medical Sciences, Karimnagar, Telangana,India.

Email: doctorlaxmi50@gmail.com

Abstract

Interduction: Allergic rhinitis is a disease of the mucous membranes of the nasal airways. Proinflamatory mediators like histamine, leukotrienes, Platelet activating factor (PAF) play a vital role in pathogenesis. Fexofenadine, an antihistaminic and Rupatadine a H1 receptor and PAF antagonist are used in the present study and their safety and efficacy were compared.

Objectives:The rationale of this study was to evaluate whether Rupatadine or Fexofenadine was better in the treatment of allergic rhinitis.

Materials and Methods :The present study comprised of a total of 100 patients with typical features of allergic rhinitis. They are divided into 2 groups of 50 patients each,group 1 is treated by Rupatadine and group 2 by Fexofenadine. Patients in the age group of 16-45 years of both sexes were included in the study and the duration of these symptoms had to be of at least one month or more to rule out common cold or other minor infections of the upper respiratory tract.

Results: Rupatadine had a slightly more edge in comparison to Fexofenadine in controlling the symptoms of the allergic rhinitis. Reduction of IgE levels, suppression of Absolute eosinophil count and radiographic evidence of improvement of maxillary sinuses was better with Rupatadine.

Conclusion:Though the results in our study did not show statistically significant difference between the two drugs, clinical efficacy and safety of Rupatadine in allergic rhinitis was clearly outweighing Fexofenadine. Considering all the above factors, Rupatadine appears to be a better choice in the treatment of allergic rhinitis as compared with Fexofenadine.

Keywords: Allergic rhinitis, Fexofenadine, Platelet activating factor, Rupatadine