Omeprazole versus Cimetidine Before endoscope in Upper Gastrointestinal Tract Bleeding Fathala Faraidoon Najmadeen1 Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Sulaymaniyah, Iraq 1Director of Specialized Ronaki Clinic, Kirkuk, Iraq Online published on 27 November, 2019. Abstract Background “Peptic ulcer bleeding” is the most significant complication of “gastric ulcer disease”. It represents the main cause of “upper gastrointestinal bleeding”. Even in the era of “H. pylori eradication”, endoscopy triage and management play a vital role in the treatment of patients. About eighty percent of “upper gastrointestinal bleeding” cases cease spontaneously. However, endoscopic intervention may be required for 20% of them. Morbidity and mortality stem from either continuous active bleeding or a sequence of recurrent bleeding. Objective To compare the effect of omeprazole versus cimetidine on upper gastrointestinal tract in terms of the endoscopic sign, hospital stay, blood transfusion and re-bleeding (that requires surgery) among patients with overt bleeding. Patients and Method 60 patients with 36 men and 24 women were enrolled in the study. The patients were diagnosed with upper gastrointestinal bleeding where the blood was observed in melena, haematemesis and/or haematochezia. The study was carried out at the medical emergency department at Sulaymaniyah Teaching Hospital during an 8-month period from February 2009 to Septemper 2009. Result Among 60 patients with upper gastrointestinal tract bleeding (UGITB), 34 of them (56.7%) had the previous history of peptic ulcer; 10 patients (16.7%) with history of previous attacks of UGITB. While 16 patients (26.6%) were diagnosed for the first time with UGITB. Endoscopic therapy was done for 9 patients (15%). Additionally, 6 patients (about 10%) were from the cimetidine group; whereas 3 of them (about 5%) were from the omeprazole group. Then, 1 patient (1.6%) from the omeprazole group and 3 patients (5%) from the cimetidine group were treated by diluted adrenaline. For the remaining patients, 2 of them (3.3%) from the omeprazole group and 3 patients (5%) from the cimetidine group were treated by band ligation. Conclusion In the Omeprazole group, the rate of patients’ needs for blood transfusion, hospital stay and the endoscopic sign of bleeding was lower than that of patients in the cimetidine group. Top Keywords Gastrointestinal tract bleeding, Omeprazole, Cimetidine. Top |