title: Efficacy and safety of pidotimod in the prevention of recurrent respiratory infections in children: a multicentre study.
abstract: Acute respiratory infections (ARI) still represent a big challenge for paediatricians, especially in those children defined as "ailed" as they are more susceptible to such kinds of disease. In this paediatric population, the immune system is still under-developed with an evident alteration in cytokine levels. A clinical study was carried out in 5 sites in Russia with the intention to enroll children particularly susceptible to contract respiratory infections (defined as "ailing"), assigning them to a treatment group with pidotimod in comparison with a control group, treating them for 30 days and observing the reduction in the number of ARI episodes throughout the follow-up period (6 months). Moreover, changes in serum immunological markers were evaluated at baseline and 30 days after treatment discontinuation. One hundred and fifty-seven ailing children were enrolled and assigned to two arms: a main pidotimod treatment group or a control group. The percentage of incidence of ARIs in the observation period at three different time points was statistically significant (p < 0.05). At the end of the follow-up period (after 6 months), ARIs had developed in 72 children (92.3%) in the main group and in 79 patients (100%) in the control group. Concerning changes of the immunological markers, the treatment group showed a better profile of normalization compared to the control group. The 30-day pidotimod therapy course led to improvement/reduction in the rate of acute respiratory infection recurrence in ailing children within a 3-month period, with a quick elimination of symptoms and signs of infection and, as a result, a faster recovery. The normalisation of the content of the pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-8 confirmed the immune-modulatory effect of the investigational drug, underlying its prophylactic effect.
authors.affiliation: Scientific Centre of Children's Health under the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, Russia.
authors.forename: L S
authors.initials: LS
authors.lastname: Namazova-Baranova
authors.affiliation: Scientific Centre of Children's Health under the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Moscow, Russia.
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Alekseeva
authors.affiliation: Department of Prevention of Infectious Diseases, Public Health Committee in Vaccinal Prevention, Saint Petersburg, Russia.
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Kharit
authors.affiliation: Public Healthcare Institution DGB n. 3, Center for Respiratory Pathology of Children, Tula, Russia.
authors.forename: T N
authors.initials: TN
authors.lastname: Kozhevnikova
authors.affiliation: Krasnoyarsk State Medical University of Russia, Krasnoyarsk, Russia.
authors.forename: T E
authors.initials: TE
authors.lastname: Taranushenko
authors.affiliation: Institute of Immunology and Physiology, Uralian Department of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Ekaterinburg, Russia.
authors.forename: I A
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Tuzankina
authors.affiliation: Scientific Department, Polichem SA, Lugano-Pazzallo, Switzerland.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Scarci
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016209:Interleukin-8 / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D011761:Pyrrolidonecarboxylic Acid / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D055502:Secondary Prevention; D053778:Thiazolidines / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D016209:Interleukin-8; D053778:Thiazolidines; C064893:pidotimod; D011761:Pyrrolidonecarboxylic Acid