New hope for stubborn coughs: NAC beats placebo in major trial

NCT ID NCT03843541

First seen Nov 01, 2025 · Last updated May 13, 2026 · Updated 25 times

Summary

This study tested whether a one-week course of intravenous N-acetylcysteine (NAC) helps adults with respiratory diseases cough up thick mucus more easily. 333 hospitalized patients in China received either NAC, an active comparator (ambroxol), or a placebo. Results showed NAC was superior to placebo in reducing mucus thickness and difficulty coughing it up by day 7.

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Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University - Respiration

    Zhanjiang, China

  • Beijing Hospital

    Beijing, China

  • Beijing Tongren Hospital

    Beijing, China

  • Chengdu Fifth People's Hospital

    Chengdu, China

  • China-Japan Friendship Hospital

    Beijing, China

  • Deyang People's Hospital

    Deyang, China

  • First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University

    Taiyuan, China

  • General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University

    Yinchuan, China

  • Inner Mongolia Baogang Hospital

    Baotou, China

  • Inner Mongolia People's Hospital

    Hohhot, China

  • Jiangxi Pingxiang People's Hospital

    Pingxiang, China

  • Jilin Province People's Hospital

    Changchun, China

  • Jinhua city central hospital/Jinhua hospital ,School of Medicine,Zhejiang UNIVERSITY

    Jinhua, China

  • Minhang District Central Hospital

    Shanghai, China

  • Nanchang University-The Second Affiliated Hospital

    Nanchang, China

  • Nanjing First Hospital

    Nanjing, China

  • Peking University Shougang Hospital

    Beijing, China

  • Qingdao Municipal Hospital

    Qingdao, China

  • Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine

    Shanghai, China

  • Shanghai General Hospital

    Shanghai, China

  • Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital

    Shanghai, China

  • Suining Central Hospital

    Suining, China

  • The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University

    Chongqing, China

  • The First Bethune Hospital of Jilin University

    Changchun, China

  • The First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University

    Taiyuan, China

  • The First People's Hospital of Zigong

    Zigong, China

  • Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University Science and Technology

    Wuhan, China

  • West China Hospital, Sichuan University

    Chengdu, China

  • Wuxi Peoples' Hospital affiliated to Nanjing Medical University

    Wuxi, No. 299, Qing Yang Rd., Wuxi City, Jiangsu, China

  • Wuxi Peoples' Hospital affiliated to Nanjing Medical University

    Wuxi, China

  • Yangzhou First People's Hospital

    Yangzhou, China

  • Zhongda Hospital, Southeast University - Pulmonology

    Nanjing, China

Conditions

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