normal saline placebo (Medical College of Wisconsin)

Normal saline placebo refers to the 0.9% sodium chloride solution used as the inactive control arm in the MAGiC (Magnesium for Children in Crisis) trial. This randomized, double-blind, Phase 2/3 study was conducted by the Medical College of Wisconsin in collaboration with the Pediatric Emergency Care Applied Research Network (PECARN) to evaluate the efficacy of intravenous magnesium sulfate in shortening the duration of vasoocclusive pain crises in children and young adults with sickle cell disease. The placebo was administered intravenously at a dose of 1 ml/kg (up to 60 ml) every 8 hours for a total of 6 doses. The trial results indicated that the addition of magnesium did not provide a significant clinical benefit over the normal saline placebo in terms of hospital length of stay or opioid requirements.

Other names

0.9% sodium chloridenormal salineisotonic saline