Effect of extracts from rabbit skin inflamed by vaccinia virus in the management of postherpetic neuralgia and on serum interleukin-6 level in aged patients / 南方医科大学学报

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To observe the effect of the extracts from rabbit skin inflamed by vaccinia virus for injection, a commercially available agent (Analgecine), in the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) in aged patients and its influence on serum interleukin-6 (IL-6) level.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A total of 44 elderly patients with PHN were randomly divided into two groups. In addition to the conventional antiviral therapy, patients in group A were given analgecine, and those in group B given indomethacin tablet. After the completion of the 14-day treatment course, the therapeutic effects were evaluated using visual analogue scale (VAS), and the changes in serum IL-6 levels after treatment were measured.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The score of VAS decreased significantly after treatment in group A (P<0.01), but not in group B (P>0.05). In both groups, the serum IL-6 level before treatment was significantly higher than that in normal control subjects (P<0.001), and lowered significantly after treatment (P<0.01) in group A, but not in group B (P>0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The extracts from rabbit skin inflamed by vaccinia virus have definite effects for rapid pain relief, and can effectively decrease the serum IL-6 level in elderly patients with PHN.</p>