[NAAGA versus disodium cromoglycate in perennial allergic rhinopathy: results of a multicenter study]

The efficacy and tolerability of Naaga (the magnesium salt of N-acetyl-aspartyl-glutamate) and of sodium cromoglycate after intranasal application were tested and compared in 100 patients suffering from chronic allergic rhinitis. The study was conducted according to a randomized, double-blind design in four centers. The intensity and frequency of typical allergic symptoms such as nasal obstruction, sneezing, runny and itching nose, conjunctivitis, ocular itching and tear flow were recorded on a 4-point scale (absent, light, moderate and severe). The intensity of nasal and ocular symptoms was found to be marked for patients in two centers. For the patients in the other two centers the drugs' efficacy was difficult to assess because symptoms were not marked (rated either as absent or light) at the beginning of the study. Thus the assessment of efficacy was based on 60 patients (centers 1 and 2), while the assessment of tolerability was based on the whole patient sample (n = 100). There was no statistically significant difference between the two compounds in terms of efficacy. A total of five patients in each of both groups complained of moderate untoward effects (all patients from the same center).