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Evaluation of Echinacea for the Common Cold

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ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00032500
Recruitment Status : Completed
First Posted : March 25, 2002
Last Update Posted : August 18, 2006
Sponsor:
Information provided by:
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)

Study Description
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Brief Summary:
The purpose of this study is to determine whether three Echinacea preparations with different chemical compositions are effective for prevention or treatment of the common cold.

Condition or disease Intervention/treatment Phase
Common Cold Drug: Echinacea Phase 2

Detailed Description:
Echinacea is a widely used herbal remedy for the common cold. Previous clinical trials designed to assess the efficacy of Echinacea for prevention or treatment of the common cold have produced inconsistent results. A variety of different Echinacea products have been used in these clinical trials. Recent studies indicate that different Echinacea preparations have dramatically different phytochemical profiles. The available clinical trial data provide no information about the potential role of the different constituents of Echinacea in common cold prevention or treatment. Our hypothesis is that the variation in reported clinical effectiveness may be due to differences in the phytochemical profile of the Echinacea preparations used. This study will address the following specific aims: 1) Evaluate the effectiveness of chemically defined extracts of E. angustifolia root which contain alkamides, echinacoside or polysaccharidelglycoprotein for common cold prevention or treatment; 2) Assess the correlation between specific Echinacea metabolites in serum and nasal secretions and efficacy for prevention and treatment of colds; and 3) Determine the effect of different Echinacea preparations on the host response to rhinovirus infection.

Study Design
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Study Type : Interventional  (Clinical Trial)
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: Double
Primary Purpose: Prevention
Official Title: Evaluation of Echinacea in a Human Rhinovirus Challenge
Study Start Date : September 2001
Study Completion Date : May 2004

Resource links provided by the National Library of Medicine

MedlinePlus related topics: Common Cold
Drug Information available for: Echinacea
U.S. FDA Resources

Arms and Interventions
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Outcome Measures
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Eligibility Criteria
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Information from the National Library of Medicine

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Ages Eligible for Study:   Child, Adult, Senior
Contacts and Locations
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Information from the National Library of Medicine

To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the contact information provided by the sponsor.

Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier (NCT number): NCT00032500


Locations
United States, Virginia
University of Virginia, Charlottesville
Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, 22904
Sponsors and Collaborators
National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
Investigators
Principal Investigator: Ronald B. Turner, MD University of Virginia School of Medicine
OverallOfficial: J. David Gangemi, PhD Clemson University
OverallOfficial: Rudolf Bauer, PhD Karl-Franzens-Universitaet Graz
More Information
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Study Description Study Design Arms and Interventions Outcome Measures Eligibility Criteria Contacts and Locations More Information

Publications of Results:

ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT00032500     History of Changes
Other Study ID Numbers: R01AT001146-01 ( U.S. NIH Grant/Contract )
First Posted: March 25, 2002    Key Record Dates
Last Update Posted: August 18, 2006
Last Verified: July 2006

Keywords provided by National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH):
common cold
Echinacea

Additional relevant MeSH terms:
Common Cold
Picornaviridae Infections
RNA Virus Infections
 Virus Diseases
Respiratory Tract Infections
Respiratory Tract Diseases