H. pylori is a type of bacteria that can infect the stomach lining and cause digestive problems such as stomach ulcers, gastritis, and even stomach cancer. Eradication of this bacteria is crucial to prevent these health issues. However, traditional treatment methods have been unsuccessful in completely eradicating H. pylori. A clinical trial has investigated a tailored triple plus bismuth therapy (TBT) that can achieve higher eradication rates based on previous antibiotic history than empiric therapies.
Clinical Trial
The clinical trial involved 800 treatment-naïve patients who were randomly assigned to four groups receiving clarithromycin-, levofloxacin- or metronidazole-containing empiric TBT and tailored TBT (clarithromycin and levofloxacin chosen based on previous macrolides and quinolones medication history). Correlation analyses were performed between past medication history and resistance or eradication rate. The objective of the study was to determine whether tailored therapy based on past medication history can improve the efficacy of H. pylori eradication compared to empiric therapies.
Results
The results of the clinical trial were significant. The eradication rates of tailored TBT were significantly higher than clarithromycin-, levofloxacin- and metronidazole-containing empiric TBT in both intention-to-treat and per-protocol analyses. The tailored therapy achieved an eradication rate of 89.5% in the intention-to-treat analysis and 95.1% in the per-protocol analysis, while the empiric therapies achieved eradication rates ranging from 80.8% to 81.5% in the intention-to-treat analysis and 86.5% to 87.8% in the per-protocol analysis. These results show that tailored TBT is a more effective treatment option than empiric TBTs for first-line H. pylori eradication.