A controlled multi-centre study of herbal versus synthetic secretolytic drugs for acute bronchitis

Herbal expectorants and secretolytic drugs hold a sizeable share of the European market. Therefore it is essential to test their clinical effectiveness and safety. The aim of the present study was to compare the herbal medication Bronchipret(R) with various other pharmacotherapeutical options for acute bronchitis. The study was designed as a matched-pair comparison of 7783 patients. Clinical outcomes of bronchitis and adverse reactions were documented. The data were evaluated by comparing the treatment success of the test medication and 3 control groups using ordinal regression. The results suggest that clinical effectiveness of Bronchipret(R) was not less than with synthetic drugs. There was a tendency for better results with Bronchipret(R), particularly in the treatment of adults. Similar results were obtained with respect to adverse reactions. Particularly in the adult sub-group, these were markedly less with herbals as compared to synthetic drugs. These findings imply that a risk/benefit evaluation would favour Bronchipret(R) over synthetic drugs for acute bronchitis. Their interpretation is limited through the fact that this study could not be randomised nor blinded. The results therefore require confirmation through randomised, double-blind trials.