A double-blind study of the effect of trimipramine in patients with the irritable bowel syndrome.

The study was performed in 428 patients, of whom 216 were women. The median age was 36.5 (16-75) years and the median weight 67 (42-118) kg. The complaints were registered on a 10-cm-long linear analogue scale by the patients and the physicians. The patients were given coded identical-appearing tablets of placebo and different doses of trimipramine (Surmontil, Rhône-Poulenc) and randomized into groups A-E. During the 6 weeks of treatment the grades of complaints were reduced to about the half of pretreatment levels. The groups treated with trimipramine (groups A-D) felt significantly more improved than the group receiving placebo (group E). The side effect of tiredness was somewhat more pronounced 1-2 weeks after start with 50 mg trimipramine in the evening than in the groups receiving placebo and lower dose schedules of trimipramine.