Gastroscopic observations following aspirin and naproxen sodium administration

A double-blind crossover study was conducted to compare the effects of aspirin (3.25 Gm/day) and a new nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug, naproxen sodium (1.1 Gm/day), on the gastric mucosa of 12 healthy volunteers. Subjects were gastroscoped after one week on each drug, intragastric photographs were obtained, and gastric contents were examined for blood. Ten subjects exhibited some degree of gastric pathology following aspirin administration, compared with one subject with gastric pathology following naproxen sodium. Naproxen sodium also induced less gastrointestinal bleeding and caused fewer side effects than aspirin.