Modern approach to the evaluation of combined effects of single-dose trials and clinical time-course studies, exemplified by combinations of pirenzepine and H2-receptor antagonists

: A modern approach to the evaluation of combined effects of two active drugs, A and B, in clinical trials is described, based on modern understanding of actions and interactions of drugs which act at distinct molecular sites. It rests on a comparison of observed combined effects with calculated effects of independent action of A plus B--greater than independent effects are considered as a potentiated response. It is illustrated by reanalysis of single-dose and time-course studies of the antisecretory action of pirenzepine and H2-receptor antagonists (cimetidine, ranitidine). Briefly, peptone-stimulated acid output was measured in 15 min periods over 3 h after the injection of drugs in three trials, one with five duodenal ulcer patients, two of them with 8 healthy volunteers each. The doses of pirenzepine and H2-blockers were fixed in each trial. The results were either expressed by the total acid output (single-dose analysis) or by the acid secretion over 15 min as time course. The results with the drug combination show greater reduction in acid secretion in all three trials with respect to independent effects. The time-course studies more clearly showed greater reduction in acid output than the analysis of total acid output, not the least with respect to p-values of differences between observed combined effects and calculated independent effects. They were obtained by the chi-square (chi 2) goodness-of-fit test, recently applied for the evaluation of dose-response curves.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)