EXHIBIT 23.1



                          INDEPENDENT AUDITORS' CONSENT


The Board of Directors
Encysive Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (formerly Texas Biotechnology Corporation):

We consent to the incorporation by reference in Amendment No. 2 to the
registration statement on Form S-3 (Registration No. 333-108107) to be filed on
October 21, 2003 of Encysive Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (formerly Texas Biotechnology
Corporation or "the Company") of our report dated March 5, 2003, with respect to
the consolidated balance sheets of the Company and subsidiaries as of December
31, 2002 and 2001, and the related consolidated statements of operations and
comprehensive loss, stockholders' equity, and cash flows for each of the years
in the three-year period ended December 31, 2002, which report appears in the
December 31, 2002 annual report on Form 10-K of the Company.


/s/ KPMG LLP

Houston, Texas
October 21, 2003