Influence of a meal on the absorption of cimetidine. A new histamine H2-receptor antagonist.

Absorption of an oral dose of 300 mg of Cimetidine was studied after an overnight fast in six healthy male volunteers on three separate occasions, 20 min before, during, and 2 h after a standard breakfast. Compared to the doses taken before and after the meal, the dose taken with the meal showed a significant delay in the time taken to reach therapeutic blood concentrations of the drug with no reduction in the period of time during which this concentration was maintained. We, therefore, suggest that the drug should be taken with a meal to achieve optimal acid inhibition in the interdigestive period.