ANTIBACTERIAL THERAPY OF HELICOBACTER-PYLORI-ASSOCIATED PEPTIC-ULCER DISEASE - A NEW STRATEGY - THE SWEDES GO FOR IT

A consensus meeting was held in Stockholm on Oct. 9, 1993, after consu ltations with the Swedish Association of Gastroenterology and Gastroin testinal Endoscopy. The meeting was attended by 35 physicians with a s pecial interest in Helicobacter pylori-associated diseases representin g the following medical disciplines: gastroenterology, surgery, intern al medicine, histopathology, microbiology, immunology, infectious dise ases, clinical physiology, and cancer epidemiology. The aims of the me eting were to define and recommend methods of diagnosis, indications f or anti-H. pylori therapy, alternatives for treatment regimens, princi ples of follow-up observation, and suitable measures of quality contro l. The participants agreed to recommend anti-H. pylori therapy only fo r the treatment of H. pylori-associated gastric and duodenal ulcer dis ease. A combination of amoxicillin, 1,000 mg b.i.d., plus omeprazole, 20 mg b.i.d., for 2 weeks was considered the first-line treatment. Sec ond-line options are not specified, but amoxicillin plus a higher-dose omeprazole, clarithromycin plus omeprazole, or various triple regimen s were discussed.