Granisetron (Kytril) suppresses methotrexate-induced nausea and vomiting among patients with inflammatory arthritis and is superior to prochlorperazine (Stemetil)

Objective. Methotrexate (MTX) is an increasingly popular anti-rheumatic dru g with its usefulness limited by toxicity, most commonly gastrointestinal ( GI). The aim of the study was to study the effectiveness of the 5-HT3 recep tor antagonist granisetron (GR) in the therapy of MTX-induced nausea. Methods. A single-blind 8 week pilot study with random allocation to either GR 1 mg or prochlorperazine (Stemetil; PCh) 10 mg was undertaken in 13 pat ients who were taking or had taken MTX for either rheumatoid arthritis (10) or psoriatic arthritis (3). Results. One in six patients treated with PCh completed the 8 week study co mpared to 7/7 treated with GR. After switching of symptomatic patients, 11 completed the study on GR and median improvement was by two grades (P < 0.0 01) with a significantly better visual analogue scale score for patient sat isfaction compared to PCh. Conclusion. Treatment with GR may be useful in establishing and maintaining some patients on MTX where GI toxicity would have precluded such therapy.