Chlorobutanol, Potassium Carbonate, and Irrigation in Cerumen Removal

October 2, 2008 updated by: Hospital Clinic of Barcelona

Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Evaluation of Chlorobutanol, Potassium Carbonate, and Irrigation in Cerumen Removal

Accumulation of cerumen in the external ear canal is a common problem. The presence of cerumen not only interferes with the clinician's view of the tympanic membrane, but may also result in hearing loss and vertigo, and may predispose to ear infections.

Removal of cerumen is facilitated by the use of a variety of ceruminolytics, or wax solvents. The current study was designed to evaluate the ceruminolytic effects of a single, brief application of the two most frequently used products in the investigators area, containing chlorobutanol or potassium carbonate with or without irrigation in the primary care setting in a randomized, single-blind trial. To our knowledge, this is the first randomized study comparing ceruminolytics with chlorobutanol versus potassium carbonate.

Study Overview

Detailed Description

INTERVENTIONS: Subjects were randomly assigned to one of three different treatments: Otocerum®; Taponoto ®, and a control group with sterile saline solution (NaCl 0.9%, Braun Medical SA, Barcelona, Spain). The test medication was instilled into an occluded ear for 15 minutes. Following this treatment, the subject's ear was irrigated with 50 mL of water. The main outcome was the proportion of tympanic membranes that were completely visualized after cerumenolytic agents or saline, alone or with irrigation if needed.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

90

Phase

  • Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

      • Barcelona, Spain, 08036
        • Hospital Clínic

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

16 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Clinical diagnosis of ear cerumen

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Infection

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Triple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: 2
Taponoto ® (potassium carbonate 20 mg/1 ml, ethyl alcohol, glycerol 480, thymol 0.4; Teofarma Iberica S.A., Barcelona, Spain),
four drops, unique doses
Placebo Comparator: 3
sterile saline solution (NaCl 0.9%, Braun Medical SA, Barcelona, Spain).
Placebo
Experimental: 1: Chlorobutanol
ceruminolytic product, Otocerum® (Chlorobutanol 50 mg/1 ml, phenol 10 mg/1 ml, turpentine essence 0.15 ml/1 ml, ethyl alcohol; Reig Jofre laboratories, Barcelona, Spain),
four drops, unique doses

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
proportion of tympanic membranes that were completely visualized after cerumenolytic agents or saline, alone or with irrigation if needed
Time Frame: 2008
2008

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
adverse effects
Time Frame: 2008
2008

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

September 1, 2008

Primary Completion (Actual)

October 1, 2008

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

October 2, 2008

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 2, 2008

First Posted (Estimate)

October 3, 2008

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

October 3, 2008

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 2, 2008

Last Verified

October 1, 2008

More Information

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Vertigo

Clinical Trials on drops intilation (Taponoto ® )

3
Subscribe