Knowledge of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance among Norwegian pharmacy customers - a cross-sectional study.

Background: Antibiotic resistance is a global health threat. Public knowledge is considered a prerequisite for appropriate use of antibiotics and limited spread of antibiotic resistance. Our aim was to examine the level of knowledge of antibiotics and antibiotic resistance among Norwegian pharmacy customers, and to assess to which degree beliefs, attitudes and sociodemographic factors are associated with this knowledge.

Ranitidine effectively relieves symptoms in a subset of patients with functional dyspepsia.

Background: Acid secretion inhibitors are of dubious value to most patients with functional dyspepsia but might be effective in a subset. The aims of the trial were to compare the effect of ranitidine with that of placebo in selected subsets of patients.

Methods: Two hundred and twenty-six patients with functional dyspepsia were included in a double-blind multi-crossover (MCO) trial.

Ranitidine for non-ulcer dyspepsia. A clinical study of the symptomatic effect of ranitidine and a classification and characterization of the responders to treatment.

Seven Norwegian centres recruited 61 female and 54 male patients with non-ulcer dyspepsia (NUD). Their mean age was 40 years. After 6 weeks' double-blind alternating treatment with 150 mg ranitidine twice daily and placebo, 1 week of each alternative (part I), an effect score (Xs) and an efficacy index (Ei) were calculated.