Trial reportRespiratory research2013
Efficacy of a carrageenan nasal spray in patients with common cold: a randomized controlled trial.
Trial report in Respiratory research, 2013. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04590365 (Efficacy of Carrageenan Nasal and Throat Spray for COVID-19 Prophylaxis - A Double Blind Randomised Placebo-controlled Trial), which is not on this map. Cited by 59 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Efficacy of Carrageenan Nasal and Throat Spray for COVID-19 Prophylaxis - A Double Blind Randomised Placebo-controlled Trial
Who cites it
59 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 104 citations in OpenAlex.
- Use of antimicrobial mouthwashes (gargling) and nasal sprays by healthcare workers to protect them when treating patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2020Pooled it
- Antimicrobial mouthwashes (gargling) and nasal sprays to protect healthcare workers when undertaking aerosol-generating procedures (AGPs) on patients without suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2020Pooled it
- Antimicrobial mouthwashes (gargling) and nasal sprays administered to patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection to improve patient outcomes and to protect healthcare workers treating them.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2020Pooled it
- Decongestant Effect of "Coldamaris Akut", a Carrageenan- and Sorbitol-Containing Nasal Spray in Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis.International journal of general medicine · 2024Trial
- Astodrimer sodium antiviral nasal spray for reducing respiratory infections is safe and well tolerated in a randomized controlled trial.Scientific reports · 2022Trial
- The Saliva of Probands Sucking an Iota-Carrageenan Containing Lozenge Inhibits Viral Binding and Replication of the Most Predominant Common Cold Viruses and SARS-CoV-2.International journal of general medicine · 2021Trial
- Efficacy of a Nasal Spray Containing Iota-Carrageenan in the Postexposure Prophylaxis of COVID-19 in Hospital Personnel Dedicated to Patients Care with COVID-19 Disease.International journal of general medicine · 2021Trial
- Safety and Efficacy of 0.5% Carbomer 980 Gel for Treatment of Symptoms of Common Cold: Results of 2 Randomized Trials.Drugs in R&D · 2019Trial
- Efficacy and safety of iota-carrageenan nasal spray versus placebo in early treatment of the common cold in adults: the ICICC trial.Respiratory research · 2015Trial
- Efficacy and safety of seawater-based nasal irrigation on nasal congestion in infants and toddlers with common cold: a randomized controlled trial.European archives of oto-rhino-laryngology : official journal of the European Federation of Oto-Rhino-Laryngological Societies (EUFOS) : affiliated with the German Society for Oto-Rhino-Laryngology - Head and Neck Surgery · 2026Article
- Carrageenan: Food Additive or Health Concern? A Comprehensive Review.Annals of nutrition & metabolism · 2026Review
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- Article
- Beyond Nutrition: The Therapeutic Promise of Seaweed-Derived Polysaccharides Against Bacterial and Viral Threats.Marine drugs · 2025Review
- Review
- A qualitative process evaluation of a nasal spray intervention to prevent respiratory tract infections.PloS one · 2025Article
- Over-the-counter carrageenan-based sprays may interfere with PCR testing of nasopharyngeal swabs to detect SARS-CoV-2.PloS one · 2025Article
- Biodegradable Gelatin-Carrageenan Sponges: High-Potential Functional Nasal Packs for Efficient Secretome Delivery.Polymers · 2024Article
- A review on the immunomodulatory properties of functional nutraceuticals as dietary interventions for children to combat COVID-19 related infections.Food production, processing and nutrition · 2023Review
- Reduction of Viral Load in Patients with Acute Sore Throats: Results from an Observational Clinical Trial with Echinacea/Salvia Lozenges.Complementary medicine research · 2023Observational
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe common cold is the most widespread viral infection in humans. Iota-carrageenan has previously shown antiviral effectiveness against cold viruses in clinical trials. This study investigated the efficacy of a carrageenan-containing nasal spray on the duration of the common cold and nasal fluid viral load in adult patients.
methodsIn a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, 211 patients suffering from early symptoms of the common cold were treated for seven days. Application was performed three times daily with either a carrageenan-supplemented nasal spray or saline solution as placebo with an overall observation period of 21 days. The primary endpoint was the duration of disease defined as the time until the last day with symptoms followed by all other days in the study period without symptoms. During the study, but prior unblinding, the definition of disease duration was adapted from the original protocol that defines disease duration as the time period of symptoms followed by 48 hours without symptoms.
resultsIn patients showing a laboratory-confirmed cold virus infection and adherence to the protocol, alleviation of symptoms was 2.1 days faster in the carrageenan group in comparison to placebo (p = 0.037). The primary endpoint that had been prespecified but was changed before unblinding was not met. Viral titers in nasal fluids showed a significantly greater decrease in carrageenan patients in the intention-to-treat population (p = 0.024) and in the per protocol population (p = 0.018) between days 1 and 3/4.
conclusionsIn adults with common cold virus infections, direct local administration of carrageenan with nasal sprays reduced the duration of cold symptoms. A significant reduction of viral load in the nasal wash fluids of patients confirmed similar findings from earlier trials in children and adults.
trial registrationCurrent Controlled Trials ISRCTN80148028.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.