Prolonged secretory inhibition during cimetidine treatment in Zollinger-Ellison patients.
In 23 Zollinger-Ellison patients who had been treated continuously with cimetidine for more than 3 months repeated measurements of basal acid output (BAO) were carried out 10-12 h after the last drug dose, to evaluate the prolonged inhibition of gastric acid during continuous cimetidine treatment. Most patients had a markedly prolonged inhibition of BAO after a few weeks of treatment compared with the BAO before cimetidine treatment. The prolonged inhibition became significant after 6 to 12 months of treatment (p less than 0.05). In some patients the prolonged inhibition was transient. In seven patients cimetidine therapy was discontinued for 3 days. Measurement of BAO after 12, 36, and 60 h of withdrawal revealed a marked inhibition lasting more than 60 h in four patients. Determination of plasma cimetidine could not demonstrate any detectable amounts after 12 h of withdrawal. The prolonged inhibition of BAO observed during continuous cimetidine treatment is of significant importance for evaluating secretory data. The phenomenon is still unexplained.
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002927:Cimetidine / Q000097:blood / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D005744:Gastric Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D006146:Guanidines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015043:Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism
D006146:Guanidines; D002927:Cimetidine