Chlorpromazine reduces fluid-loss in cholera

Abstract

Because chlorpromazine inhibited cholera-toxin-stimulated intestinal adenylate cyclase and fluid secretion in laboratory animals its ability to reduce fluid-loss in human cholera was investigated. Eleven cholera patients with severe purging (360--1340 ml/h) were studied. Eight were given chlorpromazine intramuscularly (1 mg/kg of 4 mg/kg), and three were given a dose of 1 mg/kg by mouth. In the 32 hours after treatment there was an overall reduction in stool output of 66 +/- 5% in the chlorpromazine-treated patients. This decrease was significantly larger than the 26 +/- 9% reduction in stool output seen in patients not receiving the drug, who were observed at the same time in the course of their illness. The decrease in nausea and the mild sedation produced by chlorpromazine added to the patients' comfort. No hypotension was seen in these well-hydrated patients