[Control of gastric acidity with cimetidine given as premedication before general anesthesia: efficacy and tolerance]

Cimetidine 400 mg was administered intramuscularly 60 minutes before the beginning of general anaesthesia. The double blind experiment was conducted on 84 patients divided in two groups: cimetidine and control. There was no difference in gastric fluid volume between the two groups during general anaesthesia, but acid secretion decreased significantly in the cimetidine group. Values of pH lower than 2.5 were observed in 33.3 per cent at induction and 34 per cent at recovery in the control group against 14.6 per cent and 0 per cent in the cimetidine group. Clinical tolerance to cimetidine was studied in 100 patients during operation. Cimetidine did not alter pharmacological action of usual anaesthetics. There were no significant changes in cardiovascular and electrocardiographic data.