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Can NAC help you cough up mucus faster? new trial results are in

NCT ID NCT03843541

Symptom relief Sponsor: Zambon SpA Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed This study
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026

Summary

This phase 3 trial tested whether the drug N-acetylcysteine (NAC) can thin mucus and make it easier to cough up in adults with respiratory infections like bronchitis or bronchiectasis. About 333 hospitalized patients in China received either NAC, another expectorant (ambroxol), or a placebo for one week. The study found that NAC improved mucus thickness and coughing difficulty compared to placebo.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
N-acetylcysteine (NAC)
What this could lead to
If it works, this could offer a proven option to help clear mucus and make coughing easier for people with respiratory infections.
What could go wrong
This trial is already completed, so results are known. However, the benefit may be modest and limited to short-term use in hospitalized patients.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Phase 3

Large-scale testing in a bigger group. Usually the last step before a treatment can be approved.

Participants

333 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Jun 2019

Finished

Feb 2021

Lead sponsor

A company

The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

18 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: 1. Male or female adult (≥18 years old) hospitalized patients with respiratory tract diseases and abnormal mucus secretions such as: acute bronchitis, chronic bronchitis and exacerbations, emphysema, mucoviscidosis and bronchiectasis. 2. Chinese ethnicity and/or Chinese 3. Signed the informed consent form before any study-related procedure 4. Sputum viscosity score ≥ 2 at randomization visit 5. Expectoration difficulty score ≥ 2 at randomization visit 6. Willingness and ability to comply with study procedures Exclusion Criteria: 1. Intolerance or contra-indication to treatment with NAC or ambroxol or allergy to any component of the study treatments 2. (For female patients) ongoing pregnancy or lactation, or childbearing potential but unwillingness to adopt abstinence or contraception measures during the study 3. Intake of an investigational drug within 1 month before the screening visit 4. Use of expectorants or drugs with expectorant effect within 2 days before randomization visit 5. Diagnosis of active tuberculosis, lung cancer, pulmonary fibrosis, acute pulmonary thromboembolism or any other respiratory condition that might, in the opinion of the investigator, compromise the safety of the patient or affect the interpretation of the results 6. Medical history of and/or illness (including laboratory abnormality) and/or treatment that in the investigator's opinion may interfere with the patient's safety, compliance, or study evaluations 7. Serum alanine aminotransferase and/or aspartate transaminase more than 3 times above the upper limit of normal at screening visit 8. Serum creatinine more than 3 times above the upper limit of normal at screening visit 9. Addiction to alcohol or drugs 10. Mental illness, or other reasons for non-cooperation in the investigator's opinion

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

bronchiectasis bronchitis chronic bronchitis chronic obstructive pulmonary disease Cough cystic fibrosis pulmonary emphysema respiratory system disorder

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Abnormal mucus secretions Respiratory tract diseases

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

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