Effective comparison of two different dosage regimens and treatment course of pantoprazole in non-erosive reflux disease

AIM To investigate the effects of two different dosage regimens and treatment course of pantoprazole in non-erosive reflux disease(NERD).METHODS One hundred and thirteen patients suffering from NERD were randomly allocated into group A(n = 56)and group B(n = 57),and were administered with pantoprazole 40 mg,qd.or 40 mg,bid respectively for 8 weeks.Clinical efficacy was evaluated by reflux diagnostic questionnaire(RDQ)scale before and at the end of 4,8 weeks after the administration,respectively.RESULTS There was no significant difference in reflux symptoms score between the two groups before the treatment(P 0.05).Reflux symptoms scores in group B were significantly lower than those in group A at the end of 4 weeks(10 ± s 5 vs.14 ± 4,P 0.01)and at the end of 8 weeks(7.2 ± 2.1 vs.11.7 ± 2.4,P 0.01).Compared with before the treatment,the reflux symptoms scores of the two groups at the end of 4 weeks were lower(P 0.01).There was significant difference between group A and group B at the end of 8 weeks(P 0.01).CONCLUSION Pantoprazole 40 mg daily for 4 weeks can effectively improve the symptoms of NERD,and pantoprazole 40 mg twice a day for 8 weeks will be more effective.