Effectiveness of three times daily lansoprazole/amoxicillin dual therapy for Helicobacter pylori infection in Korea

AIM: We compared three times daily dual therapy with standard triple therapy for effectiveness and safety in H.pylori infection. METHODS: Two hundred and four H.pylori positive patients with peptic ulcer were randomly assigned to one of two regimens: (i) triple therapy with amoxicillin, clarithromycin and lansoprazole twice daily for 2 weeks or (ii) dual therapy with amoxicillin and lansoprazole three times daily for 2 weeks. The success of eradication was evaluated 4 to 5 weeks after completing treatment. RESULTS: The eradication rate was 82.8% in the triple therapy group and 78.4% in the dual therapy group by per protocol analysis. This difference was not significant (P= 0.573). Adverse events were more frequent in the triple therapy group than in the dual therapy group (P= 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: Because dual therapy had fewer side effects than triple therapy and a similar eradication rate, dual therapy may provide an acceptable alternative first line therapy for H.pylori eradication in Korea.