Aim: To investigate whether adding ecabet sodium to the standard triple therapy for H pylori infection improve eradication rate.
Methods: Two hundred and fifty-seven H pylori-infected patients were randomly assigned to standard triple therapy (group A, n = 129) or triple therapy plus ecabet sodium (group B, n = 128). Successful eradication was defined as a negative (13)C-urea breath test 6-8 wk after completion of treatment.
Results: After completion of therapy, 194/257 patients showed negative (13)C-urea breath test results. According to intention-to-treat analysis, the infection was eradicated in 93/129 (72.1%) patients in group A and 101/128 (78.9%) in group B (P = 0.204). Per-protocol analysis showed successful eradication in 93/118 (78.8%) patients from group A and 101/114 (88.6%) from group B (P = 0.044). There were no significant differences in the side effects experienced by the patients in the two treatment groups.
Conclusion: Our results suggest that the addition of ecabet sodium improves the efficacy of the standard triple therapy for H pylori.