Carbocysteine | Placebo | |
Subjects | 353 | 354 |
Males | 273 (77) | 282 (80) |
Age yrs | 65±9 | 65±9 |
Duration of COPD yrs | 9±9 | 10±9 |
Baseline spirometry | ||
FEV1 L | 1.07±0.41 | 1.12±0.43 |
FEV1 % pred | 44±15 | 45±15 |
FVC L | 2.20±0.74 | 2.28±0.75 |
FEV1/FVC % | 50±13 | 50±13 |
GOLD stages | ||
II | 167 (47) | 177 (50) |
III | 139 (39) | 140 (40) |
IV | 47 (13) | 37 (11) |
SGRQ total score | 42±19 | 43±19 |
Medications for COPD prior to study | ||
β2-agonist | 76 (22) | 61 (17) |
Anticholinergic agents | 40 (11) | 36 (10) |
Inhaled corticosteroids | 64 (18) | 54 (15) |
Xanthines | 113 (30) | 95 (27) |
Data are presented as n, n (%) or mean±sd. COPD: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; FEV1: forced expiratory volume in 1 s; % pred: % predicted; FVC: forced vital capacity; GOLD: Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease; SGRQ: St George's Respiratory Questionnaire. Reproduced from [54] with permission from the publisher.