Efficacy of lansoprazole in eradicating Helicobacter pylori: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND The combination of lansoprazole with antibiotics either as double or triple therapy has demonstrated an H. pylori eradication rate of between 80 and 90%. With the aim of providing a complete revision of the results of these clinical studies and a quantification of the efficacy of lansoprazole in eradicating H. pylori and healing peptic ulcers, we have undertaken a meta-analysis of all the controlled studies published in the literature. METHODS This meta-analysis reviewed all randomized, controlled clinical trials published as full text articles in English between 1993 and 1996 that reported the efficacy of lansoprazole treatment as monotherapy or in combination with antibiotics in the treatment of peptic ulcer and in eradicating H. pylori. Articles were identified from the literature, which included both manual and computerized research (MEDLINE) and references provided by articles in this area. In order to compare the efficacy of triple therapy comprising lansoprazole vs. another PPI, data from abstracts (n = 5) were used, as no full text articles were located. RESULTS This systematic review of the literature documents that lansoprazole has a high degree of efficacy in eradicating H. pylori, above all when used within treatment schemes including amoxicillin or clarithromycin, and metronidazole or tinidazole. This efficacy is comparable to that of other PPIs. CONCLUSIONS Triple therapy allows the eradication of H. pylori in more than 85% of cases in patients with peptic ulcer. In addition, there is a substantial comparability of the efficacy of lansoprazole and omeprazole when they are used together with other anti-infective agents. Thus, lansoprazole appears to offer an option in the eradication of H. pylori.