Effects of lansoprazole plus amoxycillin on the cure of Helicobacter pylori infection in Japanese peptic ulcer patients.
AIM
The effect of lansoprazole plus amoxycillin on curing Helicobacter pylori infection and peptic ulcer recurrence was evaluated.


METHOD
The study group was composed of 68 patients with gastric ulcers and 51 with duodenal ulcers, all were H. pylori-positive. The participants were assigned at random to the lansoprazole alone group (lansoprazole 30 mg o.m. for 6 or 8 weeks) or the lansoprazole plus amoxycillin group (lansoprazole alone regimen plus amoxycillin at 500 mg q.d.s. concomitantly for the first 2 weeks). Healed patients were not given maintenance treatment with acid secretion inhibitors. The cure rate for H. pylori infection and the ulcer recurrence rate after 1 year were investigated.


RESULT
The cure rate for H. pylori infection was 4.2% in patients receiving lansoprazole alone and 38.5% in patients receiving lansoprazole plus amoxycillin (P < 0.01) for gastric ulcers, and 0% in patients receiving lansoprazole alone and 61.9% in patients receiving lansoprazole plus amoxycillin (P < 0.001) for duodenal ulcers. The recurrence rate was 42.3% in patients receiving lansoprazole alone and 28.6% in patients receiving lansoprazole plus amoxycillin for gastric ulcers, and 66.7% for patients receiving lansoprazole alone and 11.1% for patients receiving lansoprazole plus amoxycillin (P < 0.001) for duodenal ulcers. None of the patients with gastric or duodenal ulcers cured of H. pylori infection had a recurrence.


CONCLUSION
Concomitant use of lansoprazole and amoxycillin increased the curative effects on H. pylori infection. However, the cure rates with this regimen remained inadequate.