Objective: A double blind crossover study of secretin/secrepan treatment for autistic children. Materials and Methods: Through the encouragement of the autism association, 58 autistic children participated this study. The children were matched into two teams according to sex, age, body weight, and language ability, then randomly assigned into experimental and placebo groups. The children in experimental group received secrepan 50cu intra-muscularly and those in the placebo group received an injection of normal saline 2 cc. Both were observed for six weeks and then crossovers for the second injection series, followed by further observation for another sex weeks. Special attention was paid to allergic history and the management of allergic attack. Wilcoxon- Mann-Whitney and Chi-square tests were used for analyzing data and comparing both groups, and a Wilcoxon-signed ranks test was used for the pre-test and post-test analysis. Results: Overall assessment indicated a better efficacy for the experimental group, than for the controls (p < 0.05), in which the sum of a moderate improvement (20%) and a mild improvement (60%) denotes 80% effectiveness. Active improved symptoms include better language expression, better sleep pattern, better eye contact, and better socialization activity, which lasted for six to twelve weeks. Adverse side-effects of secrepan (31% of subjects) include emotional irritability, hyperactivity, and insomnia, although their frequency could not be differentiated from fluctuations in autistic symptoms. Severe fluctuation of autistic symptoms with weekly worsening and re-improved rate around 17%-20% was noted. No allergic reaction to the medication was observed in the short period. Conslusion: Secretin/Secrepan is helpful to autistic children, assisting around 80% with a mild to moderate improvement. This is still not an overall improvement or a cure for such autistic symptoms, but it is very helpful for parental management.
Objective: A double blind crossover study of secretin/secrepan treatment for autistic children. Materials and Methods: Through the encouragement of the autism association, 58 autistic children participated this study. The children were matched into two teams according to sex, age, body weight, and language ability, then randomly assigned into experimental and placebo groups. The children in experimental group received secrepan 50cu intra-muscularly and those in the placebo group received an injection of normal saline 2 cc. Both were observed for six weeks and then crossovers for the second injection series, followed by further observation for another sex weeks. Special attention was paid to allergic history and the management of allergic attack. Wilcoxon- Mann-Whitney and Chi-square tests were used for analyzing data and comparing both groups, and a Wilcoxon-signed ranks test was used for the pre-test and post-test analysis. Results: Overall assessment indicated a better efficacy for the experimental group, than for the controls (p < 0.05), in which the sum of a moderate improvement (20%) and a mild improvement (60%) denotes 80% effectiveness. Active improved symptoms include better language expression, better sleep pattern, better eye contact, and better socialization activity, which lasted for six to twelve weeks. Adverse side-effects of secrepan (31% of subjects) include emotional irritability, hyperactivity, and insomnia, although their frequency could not be differentiated from fluctuations in autistic symptoms. Severe fluctuation of autistic symptoms with weekly worsening and re-improved rate around 17%-20% was noted. No allergic reaction to the medication was observed in the short period. Conslusion: Secretin/Secrepan is helpful to autistic children, assisting around 80% with a mild to moderate improvement. This is still not an overall improvement or a cure for such autistic symptoms, but it is very helpful for parental management.