The Treatment of<i>Helicobacter pylori</i>Infection in the Management of Peptic Ulcer Disease

Antimicrobial therapy against H. pylori is indicated for all patients with documented peptic ulcer disease who have evidence of the infection. The regimen of first choice, selected on the basis of available studies, is triple therapy with bismuth, metronidazole, and tetracycline (Table 1). For patients who are known to have taken metronidazole previously, clarithromycin may be substituted for metronidazole. For patients with active, symptomatic peptic ulcers we also recommend an antisecretory drug to promote healing and relieve symptoms. Second-choice regimens consist of combinations of two antimicrobial drugs--metronidazole, amoxicillin, or clarithromycin--with an antisecretory agent, preferably an H+/K+-ATPase antagonist such as omeprazole. The combination of a single antimicrobial drug (especially amoxicillin) with omeprazole is less efficacious and cannot be recommended. Regardless of the antimicrobial regimen used, successful eradication of H. pylori infection markedly reduces the risk of recurrent peptic ulcers. If this therapeutic approach is taken with all patients with peptic ulcers, the recurrence of ulcers should become a rarity in medical practice.