Efficacy of esomeprazole on gastrointestinal bleeding caused by NSAIDs in the elderly

Objective To evaluate the effects of esomeprazole on gastrointestinal bleeding caused by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs(NSAIDs) in the elderly. Methods Eighty elderly patients taking NSAIDs were divided into two groups: esomeprazole group(n=40) and famotidine group(n=40).The incidence of gastrointestinal bleeding was observed and the pH of gastric juice was detected 2 d,4 d and 6 d after administration. Results There were 34 cases with notobvious gastrointestinal bleeding in the esomeprazole group,and 5 cases with mild bleeding,while in the famotidine group,8 cases with marked bleeding and 13 cases with mild bleeding.The obvious effective rate and the general effective rate in esomeprazole group(85.0%,97.5%) were significantly higher than those in famotidine group(47.50%,80.0%,P0.01).The pH of gastric juice on 2,4,6 d in esomeprazole group were significantly higher than those in famotidine group(5.44±0.67 vs 4.18±0.72,5.61±0.71 vs 4.85±0.85,5.74±0.63 vs 5.13±0.79,P0.01 respectively). Conclusions The early administration of esomeprazole can effectively decrease the incidence of gastrointestinal bleeding caused by NSAIDs and can increase the pH of gastric juice in the elderly.