Heartburn is a common symptom with great impact on quality of life and on the economy. An approach that helps to alleviate patients' symptoms, decrease the burden on the economy, and improve longterm outcome is needed. Step-down therapy, starting with the proton pump inhibitor lansoprazole, seems to achieve these goals.All patients who were referred to the gastroenterology clinic at the University Health Center to evaluate their heartburn and who met the inclusion criteria were included in the present study. Symptomatic and endoscopic evaluations were carried out and then they were started on the proton pump inhibitor lansoprazole to achieve symptomatic control. Step-down therapy was carried out for these patients, provided their symptoms remained controlled. At the end of the study symptomatic and endoscopic outcomes were evaluated.Heartburn was controlled on lansoprazole 30 mg/per day in 76.1
作者:Niazy, Abu Farsakh
来源:Journal of gastroenterology 2003 年 38卷 11期