Comparative study of omeprazole,pantoprazole,lansoprazole and esomeprazole for symptom relief in patients with reflux esophagitis

Objective To clarify whether there is any difference in symptom relief in patients with reflux esophagitis administrating omeprazole,pantoprazole,lansoprazole,esomeprazole.Methods Three hundred and twenty patients with reflux esophagitis were randomly divided to receive 8 weeks of 20 mg omeprazole,40 mg pantoprazole,30 mg lansoprazole,40 mg esomeprazole once a day in the morning.Daily changes in heartburn and acid reflux symptoms in the first 7 days of administration were assessed using a six-point scale(0:none,1:mild,2:mild-moderate,3:moderate,4:moderate-severe,5:severe).Results The mean heartburn scores in patients administrating esomeprazole decreased more rapidly than that in patients administrating other PPIs.Complete resolution of heartburn was also more rapidly in patients treated with esomeprazole for 5 days compared with omeprazole(P=0.0054,0.0072,0.0089,0.0107,0.0134,respectively),lansoprazole(P=0.0043,0.0034,0.0044,0.0011,0.0052,respectively),and pantoprazole(P=0.0156,0.0003,0.0005,0.0024,0.0172,respectively).There was no significant difference in endoscopic healing rate of reflux esophagitis at 8 weeks among the four groups.Conclusion Esomeprazole may relief heartburn and reflux symptoms faster than omeprazole,pantoprazole and lansoprazole in patients with reflux esophagitis.