title: Comparison of adverse gastrointestinal effects of acarbose and miglitol in healthy men: a crossover study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The incidence of the gastrointestinal adverse effects is important to determine as these effects are the reason for lower compliance of alpha-glucosidase inhibitors (alphaGIs). There has been no direct investigation of the adverse effects with acarbose or miglitol, therefore we compared them in healthy subjects.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-two healthy men were administered 75 mg of miglitol or 100 mg of acarbose per every meal for three days. After four drug-free washout days, they were administered 100 mg of acarbose or 75 mg of miglitol per every meal, respectively. They reported the state of their stool, borborygmi, abdominal bloating, flatus, and abdominal pain on the 1st and 3rd day.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Stool tended to be soft when miglitol was administered and to be firm when acarbose was administered. The flatus score of acarbose was greater than that of miglitol. The abdominal bloating score of acarbose was greater than that of miglitol on the 1st day.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that if diabetic patients have constipation, firm stool, or flatus they may be administered miglitol and if they have diarrhea or soft stool they may be administered acarbose.
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Yokohama City University Graduate School of Medicine, Yokohama.
authors.forename: Kazutaka
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Aoki
authors.forename: Tomonori
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Muraoka
authors.forename: Yuzuru
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Togashi
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Terauchi
mesh_terms: D017485:1-Deoxynojirimycin / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000494:pharmacology; D020909:Acarbose / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000494:pharmacology; D000328:Adult; D018592:Cross-Over Studies; D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000494:pharmacology; D005767:Gastrointestinal Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000503:physiopathology; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male
chemical_list: D005765:Gastrointestinal Agents; C045621:miglitol; D017485:1-Deoxynojirimycin; D020909:Acarbose