Diet or medication in primary care patients with IBS: the DOMINO study - a randomised trial supported by the Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre (KCE Trials Programme) and the Rome Foundation Research Institute

BACKGROUND

In Europe, IBS is commonly treated with musculotropic spasmolytics (eg, otilonium bromide, OB). In tertiary care, a low fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols (FODMAP) diet provides significant improvement. Yet, dietary treatment remains to be explored in primary care. We evaluated the effect of a smartphone FODMAP-lowering diet application versus OB on symptoms in primary care IBS.

METHODS

IBS patients, recruited by primary care physicians, were randomised to 8 weeks of OB (40 mg three times a day) or diet and followed for 24 weeks. We compared IBS Symptom Severity Score and the proportion of responders (improvement ≥50 points) in all patients and the subgroup fulfilling Rome IV criteria (Rome+). We also evaluated treatment efficacy, quality of life, anxiety, depression, somatic symptom severity (Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ15, PHQ9)) and treatment adherence and analysed predictors of response.

RESULTS

459 primary care IBS patients (41±15 years, 76% female, 70% Rome+) were randomised. The responder rate after 8 weeks was significantly higher with diet compared with OB (71% (155/218) vs 61% (133/217), p=0.03) and more pronounced in Rome+ (77% (118/153) vs 62% (98/158), p=0.004). Patients allocated to diet (199/212) were 94% adherent compared with 73% with OB (148/202) (p<0.001). The significantly higher response rate with diet was already observed after 4 weeks (62% (132/213) vs 51% (110/215), p=0.02) and a high symptom response persisted during follow-up. Predictors of response were female gender (OR=2.08, p=0.04) for diet and PHQ15 (OR=1.10, p=0.02) for OB.

CONCLUSION

In primary care IBS patients, a FODMAP-lowering diet application was superior to a spasmolytic agent in improving IBS symptoms. A FODMAP-lowering diet should be considered the first-line treatment for IBS in primary care.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

NCT04270487.

Androcur 50 in the treatment of prostatic carcinoma. Belgian multicentric study with the participation of 30 urologists

Androcur 50 was administered as monotherapy (n = 73) or as combined therapy with LH-RH agonists (n = 130) in 203 patients during a 6 month period. Eighty two patients had a local invasive disease, 119 had metastatic disease and 2 had a tumor confined to the prostate. Quality of life could be evaluated in 164 patients considered as valid cases for efficacy analysis. General well being improved in 41% of the patients, appetite was better in 34% of the patients and weight increased in 36%. Pain due to metastatic disease decreased or stabilised in 96% of the patients. Of the 203 patients, 8 patients had objective metastatic progression which led to death in one patient. The incidence of side effects observed in all 203 is as follows: 9% gynaecomastia, 6.5% gastro-intestinal disorders. Hot flushes were reported in 2% of the patients in the monotherapy and in 13% of the patients in the combined treatment. This open not controlled trial shows that the use of Androcur 50 in monotherapy or in combined treatment is an effective drug for prostatic carcinoma, improves quality of life and is generally well tolerated.