Treatment of reflux oesophagitis of moderate and severe grade with ranitidine or pantoprazole--comparison of 24-hour intragastric and oesophageal pH.

Background: Proton pump inhibiting drugs strongly decrease gastric acid secretion and have proven more effective in the treatment of reflux oesophagitis than H2-receptor antagonists.

Methods: In a double-blind randomized trial, 24 patients with oesophagitis grade II (n = 15) and III (n = 9) were treated for 4 weeks with either ranitidine 150 mg b.d.

[Effect of elevated head position in bed in therapy of gastroesophageal reflux].

In a randomized multicentric trial the effect of sleeping with the bed-head raised was studied in inpatients with reflux symptoms. All patients underwent an endoscopic and pH-metric examination. As a result from the diagnostic procedures three groups were formed: group 1 - refluxlike dyspepsia (endoscopic and pH-metric examination normal), group 2 - reflux disease without esophagitis (endoscopy normal, pH-metric examination abnormal), group 3 - refluxesophagitis (endoscopy abnormal).