Clinical investigations by Shelmire,1 Wooldridge and Joseph2 and Laymon and Schmid3 indicate that phenindamine (thephorin®) ointment is a valuable agent in the relief of pruritus. In order to arrive at a true evaluation of the effectiveness of this preparation, a controlled clinical study was undertaken.
MATERIALS AND METHOD
Phenindamine (2-methyl-9-phenyl-2,3,4,9-tetrahydro-1-pyridindene) is a clear, colorless, water-soluble, crystalline antihistaminic compound.4Forty-one patients were studied. In 20 cases bilateral involvement made it possible to apply the ointment containing 5 per cent phenindamine to lesions on one side of the body and the ointment base alone to comparable lesions on the opposite side for control, as suggested by Sulzberger.5 For the 16 patients presenting only a single lesion or when comparable areas did not exist, the phenindamine and control ointments were alternated at weekly intervals without the knowledge of the patient.The subjects were told that the tubes contained "slightly different forms of the same