Ulcer recurrences following initial ulcer healing with sucralfate or cimetidine

Ulcer relapses after short-term treatment of duodenal, prepyloric and gastric ulcers with Cimetidine 400 mg b.d. or Sucralfate 1 g q.i.d. were studied in 270 patients over one year. Endoscopic examinations were carried out 2-4 and 9-11 months after ulcer healing or when symptoms occurred. Ulcer relapses were found in 59% of the Cimetidine-treated patients and 51% of those treated with Sucralfate, and a further 21% and 16% respectively had endoscopically verified erosive gastroduodenitis. The cumulative recurrence rate in smokers was 82% and that in non-smokers 51% (p less than 0.001). Relapses among the Cimetidine patients occurred more often in those who smoked or had irregular working hours. The onset of the relapse was not related ulcer healing time. The ulcer relapses appeared in the same region as the initial ulcer in 88% of cases and exactly at the original site in 33%. These results suggest that cytoprotection by Sucralfate did not result in fewer or later relapses than acid reduction by Cimetidine. Cigarette smoking obviously increases the risk of relapse in patients with healed peptic ulcers.