Spasfon belongs to a class of medicines called antispasmodics which work against spasms (contractions). This medication is indicated in the treatment of spasmodic pain of the intestine, bile ducts, bladder and uterus.
Not on the list of drugs to exclude
It is best known in the form of a smooth and shiny tablet, recognizable by its pink colorbut it also exists in rectal and injectable forms.
Si le phloroglucinol does not enter the list of 88 drugs marketed in France which should be excludedaccording to the 2024 report published by Prescrire, the independent review has nevertheless “considered” it.
Placebo effect
Spasfon, marketed by the Teva laboratory, escapes because “its effectiveness is modest at best in recurrent benign intestinal disorders”but without certainty at this stage. It is only this doubt that saves him to the extent that Prescrire’s assessment lists drugs that are more dangerous than useful in all the situations in which they are authorized.
However, “in other clinical situations, whether urinary, gynecological, biliary or digestive, there is nothing to expect from phloroglucinol beyond the effectiveness of a placebo », concludes the journal considered as a reference on pharmaceutical subjects.
After having gone through clinical trial reports and systematic reviews which have evaluated phloroglucinol in the indications for which it is authorized, Prescrire points to “an indigent evaluation”, and even no evaluation in pain linked to periods even though it is reimbursed at 15% in this indication.
“A waste of money”
However, taking Spasfon, like most medications, is not innocent. It can cause allergic reactions (rash, rarely urticaria, itching) and in exceptional cases, angioedema and anaphylactic shock, lists the bible of medications, Vidal.
According to Prescribe, You should especially avoid taking Spasfon when you are pregnant, or planning to become pregnant.
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When questioned, the Teva laboratory assures that “knowledge on the effectiveness of these drugs on spasms of various origins is based on use in clinical research for several decades”. He highlights the wide use of these treatments.
The fact remains that for Ms. Ferry-Danini, a philosopher specializing in health, this remains “a fanco-French affair” since the main Western countries, apart from Italy, have not put Spasfon on their market.
The philosopher, who dug into the history of the drug – designed in the early 1960s by the Lafon laboratory as a choleretic before being marketed as an antispasmodic – argues that the authorities hardly look into its ineffectiveness because its risks remain limited .
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14 million euros
More “ It’s still crazy that we continue to give what could perhaps be akin to a placebo to patients. “, exasperates the researcher to AFP who sees this as “a large-scale problem of medical ethics”, “a waste of money, most certainly”.
In 2023, in France, Health Insurance will, in fact, reimbursed around 26.5 million boxes of phloroglucinol tablets, for a total amount of around 14 million eurosaccording to figures from Prescrire.
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Added to this financial problem is a “gender bias” since Spasfon is first given to women, notes Ms. Ferry-Danini, who sent around ten questions to the French health authorities in the spring, which remained unanswered. day. “It’s not the Mediator (Editor’s note: the health and legal scandal surrounding an antidiabetic used as an appetite suppressant) but it deserves a closer look all the same,” concludes Ms. Ferry-Danini.
