Ondansetron and irritable bowel syndrome

We read the paper by Garsed et al,1 which revives interest in 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) receptor antagonists as treatment for diarrhoea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D). As a highly prevalent functional gastrointestinal (GI) disorder,2 without a known organic pathology to target, IBS continues to be challenging to treat. Interest in agents acting on 5-HT receptors selectively is not novel, with alosetron, the most well-studied 5-HT3 antagonist, demonstrating efficacy in treating IBS-D.3 However, cases of severe constipation and ischaemic colitis led to the withdrawal of the drug. Ondansetron first demonstrated effects on GI transit over 20 years ago.4 Given the known clinical effectiveness of 5-HT3 antagonists in IBS, and the good safety profile of ondansetron, it is perhaps surprising that no randomised controlled trial has been conducted previously. At a time when licensed treatment options for IBS-D are lacking, we would like to congratulate...
Source: Gut - Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Tags: PostScript Source Type: research