Benadryl for infants
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
Only one in 22 infants who were given Pfizer's Benadryl (diphenhydramine) to aid with sleep saw an improvement in their condition compared to three of 22 infants taking placebo, a study in the July Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescene Medicine finds. Dan Merenstein, MD, Johns Hopkins University, et al., conducted a double-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial of the 44 children, ages 6 months to 15 months. Placebo or diphenhydramine was given to the babies 30 minutes before anticipated bed time. Parents reported on the number of night awakenings requiring parental assistance during a week of drug treatment and 2-4 weeks after its discontinuation. Secondary outcomes included parental overall happiness with sleep and improved sleep latency. The data safety monitoring board voted unanimously to stop the trial because of lack of effectiveness of diphenhydramine over placebo...