Levocetirizine versus Bilastine as Monotherapy in the Management of Chronic Spontaneous Urticaria: A Randomised Controlled Trial
Abstract
Introduction: Chronic urticaria is defined as the almost daily occurrence of wheals and pruritus for a minimum of six weeks, adversely affecting the quality of life and necessitating management with a drug with better efficacy and a high safety profile. This study was designed to determine how monotherapy with newer antihistamines benefits chronic spontaneous urticaria by producing earlier and longer periods of remission. Additionally, the study aimed to assess the adverse effects associated with the drugs. Aim: To compare the efficacy of Levocetirizine and Bilastine in chronic spontaneous urticaria. Materials and Methods: The study was a single-blinded randomised controlled trial conducted in the Department of Dermatology at Madras Medical College, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India over 24 months from January 2020 to December 2021. A total of 163 patients with chronic urticaria were randomly divided into two groups: Group A with 82 patients and group B with 81 patients. The patients were treated with tablet Levocetirizine 5 mg and tablet Bilastine 20 mg for six months (with up-dosing to four-fold maximum) in Group A and Group B, respectively. The treatment response was assessed using the Urticaria Activity Score (UAS) at each follow-up. Patients were followed-up for an additional six months to observe the time of recurrence. Total 15 patients were lost to follow-up and were consequently excluded from the statistical analysis. Results: At the end of six months, the improvement…
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design. Reported size: 163 participants or records.
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