The nasal decongestant effect of xylometazoline in the common cold

A double-blind, placebo-controlled study in 61 patients with colds found that at one hour after treatment, patients who used the xylometazoline (Otrivine) nasal spray had significantly better nasal airflow (384 cm3/s) than patients who used the placebo saline solution (226 cm3/s). The benefit was sustained for at least 10 hours after treatment. Subjective symptom scores were significantly lower in the patients treated with xylometazoline at day 1 and at day 10.