Efficacy and Safety of Sanjie Analgesic Capsule in Patients with Endometriosis-Associated Pain: A Multicenter, 3:1 Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial

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Sanjie Analgesic Capsule significantly improved dysmenorrhea and chronic pelvic pain in endometriosis patients compared to placebo, with similar adverse event rates.

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This multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial evaluated the efficacy and safety of Sanjie Analgesic Capsule (SAC) for endometriosis-associated pain in 323 Chinese women at 15 centers, with 241 assigned to SAC and 82 to placebo in a 3:1 ratio. Participants took SAC 1.6 g three times daily or placebo starting the first day of menstruation for 3 consecutive menstrual cycles; the primary endpoint was the dysmenorrhea clinical response based on a 10-point VAS at 3 and 6 months. SAC produced higher overall response rates at 3 months (80.1% vs 30.5%) and improved dysmenorrhea response at 6 months (62.7% vs 31.7%), along with significant reductions in chronic pelvic pain and defecation pain compared with placebo, while total adverse event rates were low and not significantly different. The study is limited by its reliance on VAS-based endpoints over a finite follow-up period and by being supported by a pharmaceutical company without their participation in research design or analysis. This paper is centrally about endometriosis—testing Sanjie Analgesic Capsule for dysmenorrhea and other pain outcomes in women with endometriosis-associated pain.

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Abstract

Objective To assess the efficacy and safety of Sanjie Analgesic Capsule (SAC) in Chinese patients with endometriosis-associated pain.

Methods

This was a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial conducted at 15 centers between November 2013 and July 2017 in China. Eligible 323 patients with endometriosis were randomized at a 3:1 ratio to the SAC group (241 cases) and placebo group (82 cases) by stratified block randomization. Patients in the SAC or placebo groups were given SAC or placebo 1.6 g 3 times per day, orally, respectively since the first day of menstruation for 3 consecutive menstrual cycles. The primary endpoint was clinical response to dysmenorrhea evaluated using a 10-point Visual Analogue Scale at 3 and 6 months. The secondary endpoint was the pain score evaluated by VAS (chronic pelvic pain, defecation pain, and dyspareunia) at 3 and 6 months, and the pain recurrence rate at 6 months. Adverse events (AEs) were recorded during the study.

Results

A total of 241 women were included in the SAC group, and 82 were in the placebo group. Among these women, 217 (90.0%) and 71 (86.6%) completed the intervention, respectively. At 3 months, overall response rate (ORR) was significantly higher in women administered SAC (80.1%) compared with those who received a placebo (30.5%, P<0.01). Six months after treatment, the ORR for dysmenorrhea was 62.7% in the SAC group and 31.7% in the placebo group (P<0.01). Chronic pelvic pain and defecation pain were significantly improved by SAC compared with placebo (both P<0.05). The incidence rates of total AEs events in the SAC and placebo groups were 6.6% and 9.8%, respectively, and no significant difference was shown between the two groups (P=0.339).

Conclusion

SAC is well-tolerated and may improve dysmenorrhea in women with endometriosis-associated pain. (Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, No. NCT02031523) Similar content being viewed by others

References

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Corresponding author Ethics declarations The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest. This study was supported by Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, China. Jiangsu Kanion Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. did not participate in the research related work such as design and data analysis. Electronic supplementary material Rights and permissions About this article Cite this article Leng, Jh., Duan, H., Guan, Z. et al. Efficacy and Safety of Sanjie Analgesic Capsule in Patients with Endometriosis-Associated Pain: A Multicenter, 3:1 Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial. Chin. J. Integr. Med. 30, 780–787 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11655-024-3756-y Accepted: Published: Version of record: Issue date: DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11655-024-3756-y

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Condition tags

dysmenorrheaendometriosischronic_pelvic_pain

MeSH descriptors

Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Analgesics Capsules Capsules Capsules Capsules Capsules Capsules

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