Table 2.
Effects of preparation, demographic, and baseline variables on improvement in symptom score on a 0–10 Likert scale, which was by 4.0, 3.4, and 3.5 points for HBB, PLUS, and PO, respectively, in the overall group (see Figure 1). Data are shown as effect size estimates with 95% CI in 1128, 381, 502, and 343 patients, respectively. These are absolute effect sizes for the categorical independent variables (preparations and gender) relative to the indicated reference group; they are values per year of age and per score of baseline values on the Likert scale for the continuous independent variables. n.d.: not determined because not an approved indication for the preparation. HBB, hyoscine butylbromide, PLUS, HBB + paracetamol; PO; peppermint oil; GI, gastrointestinal; IBS, irritative bowel syndrome.
| Indication | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GI Cramps and Pain | IBS | Bloating | Flatulence | |
| Preparation | ||||
| HBB | −0.1562 [−0.4824; 0.1701] |
reference group | reference group | reference group |
| PLUS | reference group | n.d. | n.d. | n.d. |
| PO | −0.5949 [−0.9697; −0.2202] |
−0.7166 [−1.2096; −0.2237] |
−0.2013 [−0.6088; 0.2062] |
0.0094 [−0.4829; 0.5016] |
| Gender | ||||
| Female | reference group | reference group | reference group | reference group |
| Male | −0.1785 [−0.5105; 0.1536] |
−0.1465 [−0.6867; 0.37379 |
0.0015 [−0.4706; 0.4736] |
−0.0488 [−0.5907; 0.4930] |
| Age | −0.0106 [−0.0186; −0.0025] |
−0.0208 [−0.0348; −0.0068] |
−0.0129 [−0.0255; 0.0004] |
−0.0075 [−0.0215; 0.0065] |
| Baseline work/chore impairment | 0.0319 [−0.0608; 0.1245] |
0.0400 [−0.1176; 0.1976] |
0.0233 [−0.1222; 0.1688] |
0.0333 [−0.1285; 0.1952] |
| Baseline leisure impairment | 0.1757 [0.0788; 0.2706] |
0.2589 [0.0875; 0.1976] |
0.2272 [0.0732; 0.3811] |
0.2264 [0.0516; 0.4011] |
| Baseline sleep impairment | 0.073 [0.0236; 0.1227] |
0.1009 [0.0217; 0.1800] |
0.1123 [0.0374; 0.1872] |
0.0929 [0.0049; 0.1808] |