title: Clinical and pharmacological effectiveness of cimetidine in duodenal ulcer patients.
abstract: The plasma concentration of cimetidine was measured in 40 patients with duodenal ulcer after an oral dose of 200 mg cimetidine. The peak plasma concentration was on average 1.33 mg x 1(-1) (S.D. = 0.53) and the area under the plasma concentration curve (AUC) between 60 and 120 min after cimetidine was 1.13 mg x h x 1(-1) (S.D. = 0.48). The percentage inhibition (I%) of maximal acid output (MAO) to pentagastrin during this 60-min period was 49% (S.D. = 19) with a very low, but statistically significant, correlation with the AUC, r = 0.35 (p less than 0.05), thus demonstrating a very great individual variation in sensitivity to cimetidine. In 37 of the patients the time from start of treatment with cimetidine, 1.0 g/day, to disappearance of ulcer symptoms could be assessed, and it was found that neither the individual sensitivity to cimetidine, I%/AUC, nor the gastric secretory capacity, MAO, correlated significantly with the clinical effectiveness of the cimetidine treatment, although 8 patients with a low sensitivity to cimetidine and a high MAO improved more slowly (28 days) than the other 29 patients (13 days) (p less than 0.1).
mesh_terms: D000284:Administration, Oral; D002927:Cimetidine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004341:Drug Evaluation; D004381:Duodenal Ulcer / Q000188:drug therapy*; D005260:Female; D005750:Gastric Juice / Q000378:metabolism; D006146:Guanidines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010418:Pentagastrin
chemical_list: D006146:Guanidines; D002927:Cimetidine; D010418:Pentagastrin