Phlogenzym® in Patients With Acute Thrombophlebitis - Efficacy and Tolerance

Enzymes are absorbed in the small intestine and taken up into the bloodstream, at least to some extent. There, they act in an anti-inflammatory manner, as was first described for the serine protease trypsin. Similarly, the cysteine protease bromelain, extracted from the stems of pineapples, is an effective phytotherapeutical drug with anti-inflammatory properties.Proteases have also been indicated to show a certain improvement of the fluidity of the blood. An additional component of the oral enzyme combination can be rutoside, or rutin, a flavonoid known to have cytoprotective and anti-inflammatory properties.

Inclusion criteria

• male ог female patients with thrombophlebitis in the upper extremities (with ог without varicosis);
• age ~ 18 years;
• acute thrombophlebitis in the lower leg
• moderate to severe pain as monitored on a visual analog scale (VAS, value ≥ 3 cm)
• pain under pressure
• presence of at least three of the following symptoms: skin redness, hyperthermia, phlebitic cords, feeling of heaviness and tenseness.

Exclusion criteria

• known deep phlebothrombosis
• flourishing ulcus cruris
• arterial occlusive disease
• peripheral neuropathy
• malignant disease
• concomitant concomitant treatment ог а therapy which ended less than 7 days before baseline with corticosteroids, diuretics, anticoagulative agents, platelet aggregation inhibitors and systemic/topical use of anti-inflammatory agents, other preparations for veins and analgesics;
• known intolerance against the active ог the inactive ingredients of the study medication (especially lactose);
• pregnancy
• lactation,
• known alcohol or drug abuse
• participation in another clinical study