The use of omeprazole to alleviate stomach ulcers in swine during periods of feed withdrawal.

Controlled trials were conducted to determine if treatment with the benzimidazole compound, omeprazole, would prevent gastric ulceration associated with feed withdrawal. Pigs were fed ad libitum, fasted for 24 h, or fasted for 48 h, and within each of these 3 groups the effect of no medication (controls), of 20 mg or 40 mg of omeprazole was evaluated on the pH of gastric fluid and the presence or absence of lesions in the pars esophagea. Medication with 40 mg of omeprazole resulted in significantly higher gastric pH 24 h after treatment compared with untreated pigs or pigs medicated with 20 mg of omeprazole. Fasting for 24 h or for 48 h, resulted in more pigs developing ulcers (15 of 25) than pigs allowed free access to feed (1 out of 10) (P = 0.01). The results of this trial suggest that omeprazole was effective in preventing some, but not all, of the tissue damage in the pars esophagea related to feed withdrawal. In addition to hydrochloric acid, possibly other components, such as bile acids in the fluid gastric contents, are important in causing epithelial injury.