We studied the healing efficacy of
cimetidine or placebo on 24 endoscopically proven prepyloric
gastric ulcer outpatients in randomized controlled prospective double blind trial. There were 11 patients in the
cimetidine (1,200 mg daily) treatment group and 13 patients in the placebo treated group. No
antacid was allowed, but a placebo
antacid with no neutralizing capacity was given as needed for
pain. The incidence of complete endoscopic healing at 2, 4, and 6 weeks was 45%, 64%, and 73% in the
cimetidine treated patients and 0%, 15%, and 62% in the placebo treated patients. There was a statistically significant difference (p less than .05) in complete prepyloric
gastric ulcer healing between both treatment groups after 2 and. 4 weeks of
therapy, but there was no significant difference at the 6 week observation period. The results of this study demonstrate that in prepyloric
gastric ulcer outpatients treated for 6 weeks 1)
cimetidine accelerates the rate of prepyloric
gastric ulcer healing during the first 4 weeks of treatment; 2) more than 60% of prepyloric
gastric ulcers will spontaneously heal during a 6 week observation period which is not statistically modified by
cimetidine treatment.