A double blind controlled trial of a new anorectic agent AN448.

AN448 is a new anorectic agent, which in the dose used, is without the CNS stimulant properties of the amphetamines. Patients entering the trial were a highly resistant group at least 20 percent above ideal weight chosen from an ischaemic-hyperlipidaemic clinic population. In a double blind trial of 12 patients on the active drug and nine patients on placebo, a highly significant weight loss occurred over 12 weeks in the active group only. A significant reduction in serum cholesterol occurred independently of weight loss but there was no reduction in the serum triglycerides and no change in the lipoprotein electrophoretic pattern. The drug is shown to be effective for this group of patients and may also be useful as a cholesterol lowering agent.