Therapeutic effects of famotidine on chronic symptomatic gastritis: subgroup analysis from FUTURE study.

Abstract

BACKGROUND:

A therapeutic strategy for symptomatic patients with chronic gastritis has not been established. Gastric acid has been reported to induce a variety of unpleasant abdominal symptoms. We investigated whether the histamine H2 receptor antagonist famotidine attenuated upper abdominal symptoms in patients with chronic gastritis.

METHODS:

In this multicenter prospective single-arm open-label study, 10,311 patients with a clinical diagnosis of chronic symptomatic gastritis were enrolled and each patient was administered famotidine at 20 mg/day for 4 weeks. The intensity levels of upper abdominal symptoms, epigastralgia, epigastric fullness, and heartburn were evaluated using a face scale (grade 0-4). Abdominal symptom-related quality of life (QOL) impairment was also evaluated, using an Izumo scale before and after famotidine administration. In a subgroup analysis, symptomatic responses in patients diagnosed with functional dyspepsia (FD) according to the Rome III criteria were analyzed.

RESULTS:

In 8,460 patients who completed the protocol, famotidine administration significantly attenuated epigastralgia, epigastric fullness, and heartburn, and famotidine also attenuated abdominal symptom-related QOL impairment in all patients with chronic symptomatic gastritis, in those with FD-like symptoms without organic disease, and in those with FD as defined by the Rome III criteria.

CONCLUSION:

Famotidine is effective to relieve abdominal symptoms and improve QOL, not only in patients with Rome III-defined FD, but also in those with chronic symptomatic gastritis.

• Authors: Yoshikazu Kinoshita, Tsutomu Chiba, FUTURE study group
• Journal: Journal of gastroenterology (J Gastroenterol) Vol. 47 Issue 4 Pg. 377-86 (Apr 2012) ISSN: 1435-5922 [Electronic] Japan
• PMID: 22183857 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Multicenter Study)

Chemical References

• Histamine H2 Antagonists
• Famotidine

Topics

• Adult
• Aged
• Chronic Disease
• Dyspepsia (drug therapy)
• Famotidine (therapeutic use)
• Female
• Gastritis (drug therapy)
• Heartburn (drug therapy)
• Histamine H2 Antagonists (therapeutic use)
• Humans
• Male
• Middle Aged
• Product Surveillance, Postmarketing
• Prospective Studies
• Quality of Life
• Severity of Illness Index
• Surveys and Questionnaires
• Treatment Outcome