Sesame oil use in ameliorating cough in children: A randomised controlled trial

To examine the role of sesame oil (SO) in reducing the frequency and severity of acute cough in children 2–12 years of age. Double blind, placebo controlled randomised trial. Seven primary health care centres/clinics in Lebanon. A total of 107 children between the age of 2 and 12 years with cough secondary to common cold were enrolled. Five milliliters of SO or placebo by mouth at bed time. Outcome measures: Cough strength and frequency as judged by parents on a four points Likert scale after giving three syrup doses over three consecutive nights. Analysis was performed on an intention to treat basis. At day 1, the effect size for cough frequency and cough strength were +0.26 (95%CI −0.64,+0.12) and +0.15 (95%CI −0.53, +0.23), respectively. SO decreased cough symptoms more than placebo but these were not statistically significant. The effect size decreased from days 1 to 3. Cough symptoms improved over the 3 days both in SO and placebo group. No evidence of undesirable effects were noted to SO. Like other over the counter anti-tussives, SO did not result in marked improvement in cough symptoms.