[Cimetidin treatment of duodenal ulcer resistant to antacid therapy (author's transl)].

A selected group of 21 patients having received antacids (neutralizing capacity less than 50 meq HCl/d) as treatment for duodenal ulcers showed no improvement of the disease as demonstrated by endoscopic control after 8-16 weeks. Subsequent treatment of this group with 1 g Cimetidin/d for periods of 4-8 weeks was successful as far as healing of the ulcers is concerned in 85% of the cases, however symptoms of duodenitis persisted. In a control group of 39 patients which did not improve after 8 weeks of treatment with antacids the same therapy was continued for another 8 weeks; during this second period ulcers disappeared in 12 patients = 30% of the group. Improvement of symptoms resulted on the average after 6 days of therapy with cimetidine. One third of the patients treated with cimetidine relapsed with ulcers after approximately 4 months as demonstrated by endoscopy. Patients with duodenal ulcers resistant to therapy with antacids do represent a selected group suited to test the potency of new therapeutic methods as for instance treatment with cimetidine.