Page last updated: 2024-12-05

docusate

Description Research Excerpts Clinical Trials Roles Classes Pathways Study Profile Bioassays Related Drugs Related Conditions Protein Interactions Research Growth Market Indicators

Description

Docusate is a synthetic stool softener that works by increasing the amount of water in the stool. It is often used to treat constipation. Docusate is available over-the-counter and by prescription. It is generally safe and well-tolerated. However, it can cause side effects, such as diarrhea, abdominal cramps, and nausea. Docusate is not recommended for people who are allergic to it or who have certain medical conditions, such as bowel obstruction or severe diarrhea. Docusate is synthesized by reacting sodium lauryl sulfate with an alkyl sulfate. It is studied because it is an effective treatment for constipation and has a low risk of side effects.'

Dioctyl Sulfosuccinic Acid: All-purpose surfactant, wetting agent, and solubilizer used in the drug, cosmetics, and food industries. It has also been used in laxatives and as cerumenolytics. It is usually administered as either the calcium, potassium, or sodium salt. [Medical Subject Headings (MeSH), National Library of Medicine, extracted Dec-2023]

Cross-References

ID SourceID
PubMed CID11339
CHEMBL ID1477036
CHEBI ID534
SCHEMBL ID41958
MeSH IDM0491450

Synonyms (48)

Synonym
docusate
colace
docusate hydrogen
1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate
C07874
10041-19-7
dioctyl sulfosuccinic acid
spolion 8
butanedioic acid, sulfo-, 1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyl) ester
1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyl) 2-sulphosuccinate
einecs 233-124-0
dioctyl sulfosuccinate
1,4-bis(2-ethylhexoxy)-1,4-dioxobutane-2-sulfonic acid
butanedionic acid, sulfo-, 1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyl) ester
BMSE000720
sulfosuccinic acid bis(2-ethylhexyl) ester
dioctylsulfosuccinate
sulfosuccinate, dioctyl
butanedioic acid, 2-sulfo-, 1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyl) ester
di-beta-ethylhexyl sodium sulfo-succinate
unii-m7p27195ag
bis(2-ethylhexyl)succinat-2-sulfonsaeure
m7p27195ag ,
1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-dioxo-2-butansulfonsaeure [iupac]
dioctylsulfosuccinsaeure
doc-q-lace
1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-dioxo-2-butansulfonsaeure
diocto
docusates
chebi:534 ,
CHEMBL1477036
docusates [mart.]
docusate [who-dd]
docusate [vandf]
SCHEMBL41958
DTXSID1044279 ,
1,4-bis[(2-ethylhexyl)oxy]-1,4-dioxobutane-2-sulfonic acid
LMFA07010721
bis(2-ethylhexyl) sulfosuccinate
21954-86-9
DB11089
Q27105309
dionex
1,4-bis((2-ethylhexyl)oxy)-1,4-dioxobutane-2-sulfonic acid
EN300-20176424
1,4-bis(2-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-dioxo-2-butansulfonsaeure (iupac)
docusates (mart.)
dtxcid9024279

Research Excerpts

Overview

Docusate sodium is a stool softener that is frequently prescribed to treat constipation despite poor evidence for efficacy. Docusate is a sulfated surfactant and, as such, may inactivate viral pathogens.

ExcerptReferenceRelevance
"Docusate sodium is a commonly prescribed medication to relieve constipation, but several studies have demonstrated its ineffectiveness. "( A Quality Improvement Approach to Decrease the Utilization of Docusate in Hospitalized Patients.
Cowdell, JC; Espinosa, SM; Gococo-Benore, DA; Heckman, MG; Kwon, JY; McCormick, BJ; Seim, LA; Shair, KA,
)
1.81
"Docusate sodium is a stool softener that is frequently prescribed to treat constipation despite poor evidence for efficacy, thus providing a good target for deprescription."( Missed Opportunity to Deprescribe: Docusate for Constipation in Medical Inpatients.
Cavalcanti, RB; Kamali, R; MacMillan, TE, 2016
)
1.43
"Docusate is a sulfated surfactant and, as such, may inactivate viral pathogens by disrupting viral envelopes and/or denaturing/disassociating proteins."( Preclinical evaluation of docusate as protective agent from herpes simplex viruses.
Cheung, D; Gong, Y; Sacks, SL; Wen, A; Wong, M, 2001
)
1.33

Treatment

ExcerptReferenceRelevance
"Docusate pretreatment of cells was associated with a 45% reduction in infectivity of those cells, despite a triple washing procedure."( Preclinical evaluation of docusate as protective agent from herpes simplex viruses.
Cheung, D; Gong, Y; Sacks, SL; Wen, A; Wong, M, 2001
)
1.33

Toxicity

ExcerptReferenceRelevance
" We investigated the toxicological interactions of the most toxic surfactant, docusate sodium, with two chlorinated compounds, triclosan and 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (TCP), in their binary and ternary mixtures using the method of the combination index based on the median-effect equation."( Ecotoxicological assessment of surfactants in the aquatic environment: combined toxicity of docusate sodium with chlorinated pollutants.
Boltes, K; Fernández-Piñas, F; Leganés, F; Petre, A; Rodea-Palomares, I; Rosal, R, 2010
)
0.81
"The Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR) Expert Panel (Panel) assessed the safety of 8 dialkyl sulfosuccinate salts for use in cosmetics, finding that these ingredients are safe in cosmetics in the present practices of use and concentration when formulated to be nonirritating."( Safety Assessment of Dialkyl Sulfosuccinate Salts as Used in Cosmetics.
Andersen, FA; Belsito, DV; Bergfeld, WF; Fiume, MM; Heldreth, B; Hill, RA; Klaassen, CD; Liebler, DC; Marks, JG; Shank, RC; Slaga, TJ; Snyder, PW, 2016
)
0.43
"The toxic action of surfactant used as a stabilizer of metal nanoparticles have been studied with the aim to determine separate contributions of surfactant monomers and micelles to cell viability decrease."( The effect of surfactant micellization on the cytotoxicity of silver nanoparticles stabilized with aerosol-OT.
Egorova, EM; Kaba, SI, 2019
)
0.51

Pharmacokinetics

ExcerptReferenceRelevance
" After vehicle, the clearance was monoexponential with a half-life of 153 min."( Biexponential pulmonary clearance of 99mTc-DTPA induced by detergent aerosol.
Evander, E; John, J; Jonson, B; Sörnmo, L; Valind, S; Wollmer, P, 1994
)
0.29
" Clearance was measured for 3 h and the kinetics was analysed by fitting mono- and biexponential equations to the clearance curve and was expressed as a half-life (T 1/2)."( Effect of detergent combined with large tidal volume ventilation on alveolocapillary permeability.
Evander, E; John, J; Johnson, B; Taskar, V; Wollmer, P, 1996
)
0.29
"99mTc-DTPA cleared from the lungs with a half-life of 71 +/- 22 min in the control animals, 21."( Pulmonary clearance of 99mTc-DTPA in experimental surfactant dysfunction treated with surfactant instillation.
John, J; Lachmann, B; Nilsson, K; Robertson, B; Wollmer, P, 1997
)
0.3

Compound-Compound Interactions

ExcerptReferenceRelevance
" When detergent was combined with LTVV, clearance was bicompartmental as with detergent alone, with the same size of the fast fraction."( Effect of detergent combined with large tidal volume ventilation on alveolocapillary permeability.
Evander, E; John, J; Johnson, B; Taskar, V; Wollmer, P, 1996
)
0.29

Bioavailability

ExcerptReferenceRelevance
"25 mg), codeine phosphate (8 mg) and paracetamol (500 mg) had any effect on the bioavailability of the analgesics."( The relative bioavailability of paracetamol and codeine after oral administration of a combination of buclizine, paracetamol and codeine, with or without docusate, and of paracetamol alone in healthy volunteers.
Johnson, ES; Merrington, D; Oliver, W; Persaud, N, 1985
)
0.47
"A pilot bioavailability study was carried out to evaluate the drug interaction and influence of dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate (DS) on the absorption/bioavailability of tetracycline."( Influence of dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate on the absorption of tetracycline.
Fairweather, WR; Hunt, JP; Knapp, G; Prasad, VK; Shah, VP,
)
0.13
" This increase in the drain volume was mainly due to a decrease in peritoneal fluid absorption rate in the DSS group (0."( Dioctyl sodium sulphosuccinate increases net ultrafiltration in peritoneal dialysis.
Bergström, J; Chen, C; Heimbürger, O; Lindholm, B; Qureshi, AR; Wang, T; Waniewski, J, 1997
)
0.3
" The bioavailability of inhaled insulin (1."( Enhanced insulin absorption in the rabbit airways and lung by sodium dioctyl sulfosuccinate.
Almér, LO; Bäckström, K; Dahlbäck, M; Eirefelt, S; Jonson, B; Larsson, P; Wollmer, P, 2002
)
0.31
"Oral bioavailability of atorvastatin calcium (ATC) is very low (only 14%) due to instability and incomplete intestinal absorption and/or extensive gut wall extraction."( Enhanced bioavailability of atorvastatin calcium from stabilized gastric resident formulation.
Dehghan, MH; Khan, FN, 2011
)
0.37
"Particle size reduction is a suitable method to enhance the bioavailability of poorly soluble drugs."( Process optimization of a novel production method for nanosuspensions using design of experiments (DoE).
Heinzerling, O; Möschwitzer, JP; Müller, RH; Salazar, J, 2011
)
0.37
" Biodistribution studies of (99m)Tc labeled TMX SNP in rats revealed no significant absorption however oral pharmacokinetics revealed enhanced oral bioavailability of TMX (165%) compared to TMX suspension."( Self nanoprecipitating preconcentrate of tamoxifen citrate for enhanced bioavailability.
Devarajan, PV; Gaikwad, RV; Kapse, SV; Samad, A, 2012
)
0.38
"The reported persistence of the dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate (DOSS) surfactant in Corexit 9500 in the oil plumes formed during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill has contributed to concerns regarding the biodegradability and bioavailability of dispersed oil and dispersants used as an oil spill countermeasure in the Gulf of Mexico."( Biodegradability of Corexit 9500 and dispersed South Louisiana crude oil at 5 and 25 °C.
Campo, P; Suidan, MT; Venosa, AD, 2013
)
0.39
" Compared with the drug powder, the solubility, dissolution and bioavailability of tacrolimus with the fast-dissolving solid dispersion containing tacrolimus/HP-β-CD/DOSS in the weight ratio of 5:40:4 were boosted by approximately 700-, 30- and 2-fold, respectively."( Development of novel fast-dissolving tacrolimus solid dispersion-loaded prolonged release tablet.
Cho, JH; Choi, HG; Kim, DW; Kim, JO; Kim, YI; Woo, JS; Yong, CS; Yousaf, AM, 2014
)
0.4
" Self-emulsifying drug delivery systems (SEDDS) considered a suitable candidate to enhance the bioavailability of poorly soluble drugs by improving their membrane permeability, however, incorporating hydrophilic drugs in to these carriers remained a great challenge."( Self-emulsifying drug delivery systems: A versatile approach to enhance the oral delivery of BCS class III drug via hydrophobic ion pairing.
Abbas, G; Asad, M; Nazir, I; Rasul, A; Shah, MA, 2023
)
0.91

Dosage Studied

Study was designed to determine the effect of a clinically used surfactant, docusate sodium, on the release of chlorpheniramine from a controlled-release dosage form. The fast-dissolving mannitol-based granules containing danazol nanocrystals were compressed into a tablet dosageform.

ExcerptRelevanceReference
" Otherwise, dosage was increased gradually to a maximum of four tablets twice daily until defecation occurred or until the four-day treatment period was over."( Management of postoperative constipation in anorectal surgery.
Corman, ML, 1979
)
0.26
"A 12-week program for 42 chronically constipated patients in a nursing home involved a graduated dosage regimen of standardized senna concentrate with dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate (Senokot-S Tablets), a high-fiber diet, and an increased fluid intake."( Regulation of bowel function by a laxative/stool softener preparation in aged nursing home patients.
Maddi, VI, 1979
)
0.26
" From 5 to 33 hours after the high dosage of magnesium sulfate, feces were slightly softer than usual in all horses."( Comparison of the effects of intragastric infusions of equal volumes of water, dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate, and magnesium sulfate on fecal composition and output in clinically normal horses.
Ferrante, PL; Freeman, DE; Palmer, JE, 1992
)
0.28
" Treatments were as follows: 1) control (no defaunation), 2) dosing fasted steers for two consecutive days with 40 g dioctyl sulfosuccinate (DSS) and 3) daily feeding of 40 g DSS to defaunated, nonfasted steers."( Effects of defaunation on in situ dry matter and nitrogen disappearance in steers and growth of lambs.
Ankrah, P; Dehority, BA; Kampman, KA; Loerch, SC, 1990
)
0.28
" The indiscriminate use of surface active agents to increase the dissolution rate of solid oral dosage forms in the belief that the resulting increased dissolution improves product bioavailability must be questioned."( Influence of dioctyl sodium sulfosuccinate on the absorption of tetracycline.
Fairweather, WR; Hunt, JP; Knapp, G; Prasad, VK; Shah, VP,
)
0.13
"This study was designed to determine the effect of a clinically used surfactant, docusate sodium, on the release of chlorpheniramine from a controlled-release dosage form (encapsulated coated pellets)."( Effect of docusate sodium on drug release from a controlled-release dosage form.
Chambliss, WG; Cleary, RW; Fischer, R; Jones, AB; Kibbe, AH; Nicholes, W; Skierkowski, P, 1981
)
0.89
"4 mg/ml), which precludes the preparation of liquid dosage forms, in particular, parenteral formulations."( Development of parenteral formulations and evaluation of the biological activity of the trypanocide drug benznidazole.
Bassani, G; Lamas, MC; Leonardi, D; Nocito, I; Pascutti, F; Salomón, CJ; Serra, E; Villaggi, L, 2006
)
0.33
" The reduction of palladium and platinum ions and the formation of corresponding clusters are monitored as a function of dosage of reducing agent, hydrazine (N(2)H(5)OH)."( Nucleation and growth mechanism of Pd/Pt bimetallic clusters in sodium bis(2-ethylhexyl)sulfosuccinate (AOT) reverse micelles as studied by in situ X-ray absorption spectroscopy.
Chen, CH; Hwang, BJ; Lee, JF; Liu, DG; Sarma, LS; Tang, MT; Wang, GR, 2005
)
0.33
" The selected excipients such as docusate sodium enhanced the stability and solubility of ATC in gastric media and tablet dosage form."( Enhanced bioavailability of atorvastatin calcium from stabilized gastric resident formulation.
Dehghan, MH; Khan, FN, 2011
)
0.65
" Using a Delphi study method, physicians were asked to rank preferences of drug and dosing schedule for first-line opioid, antiemetic, and laxative for the treatment of adults with chronic pain due to cancer and other life-threatening conditions."( Strategic pain management: the identification and development of the IAHPC opioid essential prescription package.
Bennett, MI; Bruera, E; De Lima, L; Nekolaichuk, C; Ripamonti, CI; Vignaroli, E; Wenk, R, 2012
)
0.38
" The fast-dissolving mannitol-based granules containing danazol nanocrystals and docusate sodium were compressed into a tablet dosage form."( Role of wetting agents and disintegrants in development of danazol nanocrystalline tablets.
Bowen, W; Gong, Y; Karki, S; Kumar, S; Meruva, S; Thool, P, 2020
)
0.78
[information is derived through text-mining from research data collected from National Library of Medicine (NLM), extracted Dec-2023]

Drug Classes (2)

ClassDescription
diesterA diester is a compound containing two ester groups.
organosulfonic acidAn organic derivative of sulfonic acid in which the sulfo group is linked directly to carbon.
[compound class information is derived from Chemical Entities of Biological Interest (ChEBI), Hastings J, Owen G, Dekker A, Ennis M, Kale N, Muthukrishnan V, Turner S, Swainston N, Mendes P, Steinbeck C. (2016). ChEBI in 2016: Improved services and an expanding collection of metabolites. Nucleic Acids Res]

Bioassays (19)

Assay IDTitleYearJournalArticle
AID1079945Animal toxicity known. [column 'TOXIC' in source]
AID1079940Granulomatous liver disease, proven histopathologically. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'GRAN' in source]
AID1079938Chronic liver disease either proven histopathologically, or through a chonic elevation of serum amino-transferase activity after 6 months. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'CHRON' in source]
AID1079932Highest frequency of moderate liver toxicity observed during clinical trials, expressed as a percentage. [column '% BIOL' in source]
AID1079944Benign tumor, proven histopathologically. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'T.BEN' in source]
AID1079937Severe hepatitis, defined as possibly life-threatening liver failure or through clinical observations. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'MASS' in source]
AID1079948Times to onset, minimal and maximal, observed in the indexed observations. [column 'DELAI' in source]
AID1079946Presence of at least one case with successful reintroduction. [column 'REINT' in source]
AID1079943Malignant tumor, proven histopathologically. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'T.MAL' in source]
AID1079934Highest frequency of acute liver toxicity observed during clinical trials, expressed as a percentage. [column '% AIGUE' in source]
AID1079949Proposed mechanism(s) of liver damage. [column 'MEC' in source]
AID1079931Moderate liver toxicity, defined via clinical-chemistry results: ALT or AST serum activity 6 times the normal upper limit (N) or alkaline phosphatase serum activity of 1.7 N. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'BIOL' in source]
AID1079935Cytolytic liver toxicity, either proven histopathologically or where the ratio of maximal ALT or AST activity above normal to that of Alkaline Phosphatase is > 5 (see ACUTE). Value is number of references indexed. [column 'CYTOL' in source]
AID1079942Steatosis, proven histopathologically. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'STEAT' in source]
AID1079941Liver damage due to vascular disease: peliosis hepatitis, hepatic veno-occlusive disease, Budd-Chiari syndrome. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'VASC' in source]
AID1079939Cirrhosis, proven histopathologically. Value is number of references indexed. [column 'CIRRH' in source]
AID1079933Acute liver toxicity defined via clinical observations and clear clinical-chemistry results: serum ALT or AST activity > 6 N or serum alkaline phosphatases activity > 1.7 N. This category includes cytolytic, choleostatic and mixed liver toxicity. Value is
AID1079936Choleostatic liver toxicity, either proven histopathologically or where the ratio of maximal ALT or AST activity above normal to that of Alkaline Phosphatase is < 2 (see ACUTE). Value is number of references indexed. [column 'CHOLE' in source]
AID1079947Comments (NB not yet translated). [column 'COMMENTAIRES' in source]
[information is prepared from bioassay data collected from National Library of Medicine (NLM), extracted Dec-2023]

Research

Studies (696)

TimeframeStudies, This Drug (%)All Drugs %
pre-1990149 (21.41)18.7374
1990's135 (19.40)18.2507
2000's163 (23.42)29.6817
2010's165 (23.71)24.3611
2020's84 (12.07)2.80
[information is prepared from research data collected from National Library of Medicine (NLM), extracted Dec-2023]

Market Indicators

Research Demand Index: 65.96

According to the monthly volume, diversity, and competition of internet searches for this compound, as well the volume and growth of publications, there is estimated to be very strong demand-to-supply ratio for research on this compound.

MetricThis Compound (vs All)
Research Demand Index65.96 (24.57)
Research Supply Index6.67 (2.92)
Research Growth Index4.65 (4.65)
Search Engine Demand Index215.95 (26.88)
Search Engine Supply Index3.75 (0.95)

This Compound (65.96)

All Compounds (24.57)

Study Types

Publication TypeThis drug (%)All Drugs (%)
Trials26 (3.42%)5.53%
Reviews23 (3.02%)6.00%
Case Studies14 (1.84%)4.05%
Observational2 (0.26%)0.25%
Other696 (91.46%)84.16%
[information is prepared from research data collected from National Library of Medicine (NLM), extracted Dec-2023]