Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31628586›Full record

Trial reportInvestigational new drugs2020

Impact of L-carnitine on imatinib-related muscle cramps in patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumor.

Heejung Chae, Min-Hee Ryu, Jungeun Ma, Moyeol Beck, Yoon-Koo Kang

Registry-linked trialAbstract readClinical Trial
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Investigational new drugs, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03426722 (Phase III Study of L-carnitine vs Placebo for the Treatment of Muscle Cramps After Imatinib in Patients With Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors), which is not on this map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
0.5field-weighted citation impact, top 32% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

NCT03426722 phase3completednot on this map

Phase III Study of L-carnitine vs Placebo for the Treatment of Muscle Cramps After Imatinib in Patients With Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GISTs) (Single-center Study)

TypeinterventionalSponsorAsan Medical CenterRan2018 to 2019Enrolled4ConditionsGastrointestinal Stromal Tumors (GISTs)ArmsL-carnitine, Placebo
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 6 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Review
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Heejung ChaeDepartment of Oncology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 05505, South Korea.ORCID 0000-0003-3547-3521
Min-Hee RyuDepartment of Oncology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 05505, South Korea.
Jungeun MaDepartment of Oncology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 05505, South Korea.
Moyeol BeckDepartment of Oncology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 05505, South Korea.
Yoon-Koo KangDepartment of Oncology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 05505, South Korea. ykkang@amc.seoul.kr.
Ulsan College · KR

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction Muscle cramps constitute one of the leading adverse events of imatinib, the standard first-line treatment for advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST). This study aims to assess the impact of L-carnitine on relieving cramps in patients with GIST taking imatinib. Materials and methods We reviewed our prospective database for patients with GIST who took L-carnitine (500-mg tablet, 2-3 times daily) for muscle cramps in Asan Medical Center. The assessment tool included severity by the numeric rating scale (NRS), frequency, duration of cramps, and questionnaire for the disturbance in basic activities of daily living (ADL), instrumental ADL (iADL), outdoor activity, or sleeping before and after L-carnitine treatment. Results We examined 42 patients [median age: 60 (range: 17-81) years; males, 52.4%] who received L-carnitine for cramps on NRS ≥ 4 intensity during 2016-2017. In 83.3% of patients (n = 35), the NRS score declined to <4 points, with 8 patients (19.0%) experiencing complete disappearance of symptoms [median response time: 10 (range: 2-30) days]. Moreover, the median duration of each episode and frequency decreased from 5 to 2 min and from 30 to 3 times per month (P < 0.001), respectively. We observed substantial improvement in all quality-of-life aspects after L-carnitine (ADL, 73.2%-14.6%; iADL, 73.2%-17.1%; sleeping, 78.0%-22.0%; outdoor activity, 68.3%-17.1%; P < 0.001). ConclusionL-carnitine could effectively relieve imatinib-related muscle cramps in patients with GIST. Accordingly, a randomized phase 3 study is currently ongoing (NCT03426722).

Indexed as

Activities of Daily LivingAdolescentAdultAgedAged, 80 and overAntineoplastic AgentsCarnitineFemaleGastrointestinal NeoplasmsGastrointestinal Stromal TumorsHumansImatinib MesylateMaleMiddle AgedMuscle CrampProtein Kinase InhibitorsAntineoplastic AgentsCarnitineImatinib MesylateProtein Kinase InhibitorsGastrointestinal stromal tumorsImatinibL-carnitineMuscle cramp

Identifiers

PMID31628586
OpenAlexW2980636790

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

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.