title: Comparison of misoprostol and cimetidine in the treatment of gastric ulcer.
abstract: The efficacy of misoprostol (a synthetic analogue of prostaglandin E1) and cimetidine in the treatment of gastric ulcer was evaluated. Thirty-two patients with endoscopically proven gastric ulcer were randomized, in a double-blind manner, in one of three groups that received four daily doses of either misoprostol, 50 or 200 micrograms, or cimetidine, 300 mg. Ulcer healing was assessed endoscopically after 4 weeks of treatment. The three groups were fairly comparable in their alcohol and caffeine intake, previous ulcer history and ulcer size. A relatively high proportion of patients in the cimetidine-treated group was smokers. Only one patient was withdrawn from the study. On the misoprostol low dose, healing of the ulcer was observed in 20% of the patients. In contrast, healing on the high dose of misoprostol (70%) was not significantly different from that on cimetidine (73%). No important clinical side effects were observed in any of the patients. These results (part of a multicenter, international study) suggest that the divided daily dose of 800 micrograms misoprostol is safe and effective in the short-term treatment of gastric ulcer.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000527:Alprostadil / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002927:Cimetidine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D005260:Female; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D005773:Gastroscopy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016595:Misoprostol; D011897:Random Allocation; D012907:Smoking; D013276:Stomach Ulcer / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D016595:Misoprostol; D002927:Cimetidine; D000527:Alprostadil