Elsevier

Respiratory Medicine

Oral iodinated activated charcoal improves lung function in patients with COPD

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Open access

Summary

The consequence of viii weeks treatment with oral iodinated activated charcoal (IAC) on lung part of patients with moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was examined in a double blind randomized placebo controlled parallel group study with 40 patients. In the IAC group, patients showed a statistically significant improvement of FEV1 baseline by 130 ml compared to placebo, corresponding to viii.2% improvement (p = 0.031*). Correlation statistics revealed that the improvement of FEVone baseline was significantly correlated both to FEV1 postal service-bronchodilator (p = 0.0020**) and FEV1 mail-exercise (0.033*) values. This demonstrates that the improved baseline lung function by IAC did not inhibit a farther beta2-adrenoceptor relaxation, and thus that patients did not reach a limit for maximal improvement of the lung function afterwards IAC treatment. Eight patients in the IAC group developed aberrant thyroid hormone levels transiently during the treatment. This side effect was not correlated to comeback of lung role (p = 0.82). No serious adverse effects directly related to the handling were recorded.

In summary, this study demonstrates that iodinated activated charcoal surprisingly and significantly improved lung role of patients with moderate COPD. The underlying mechanism of action is unclear, but is probable to be unlike from the drugs used today. The firsthand determination is that further studies are now justified in order to make up one's mind clinical efficacy of IAC in COPD and explore possible mechanisms of action.

Keywords

Clinical written report

COPD treatment

New mechanism

Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.