Retrospective Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2018. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Oct 28, 2018; 24(40): 4596-4605
Published online Oct 28, 2018. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v24.i40.4596
Outcomes of furazolidone- and amoxicillin-based quadruple therapy for Helicobacter pylori infection and predictors of failed eradication
Ya-Wen Zhang, Wei-Ling Hu, Yuan Cai, Wen-Fang Zheng, Qin Du, John J Kim, John Y Kao, Ning Dai, Jian-Min Si
Ya-Wen Zhang, Wei-Ling Hu, Yuan Cai, Wen-Fang Zheng, Ning Dai, Jian-Min Si, Department of Gastroenterology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310016, Zhejiang Province, China
Ya-Wen Zhang, Wei-Ling Hu, Wen-Fang Zheng, Jian-Min Si, Institute of Gastroenterology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310016, Zhejiang Province, China
Qin Du, Department of Gastroenterology, The Second Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310009, Zhejiang Province, China
John J Kim, Division of Gastroenterology, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA 92354, United States
John Y Kao, Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Internal Medicine, Michigan Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States
Author contributions: Hu WL, Dai N and Si JM designed the study; Zhang YW, Cai Y and Zheng WF performed the research; Du Q contributed to providing support to patients; Zhang YW and Kim JJ analyzed the data; Zhang YW wrote the paper; Hu WL, Kim JJ and Kao JY critically revised the manuscript; all authors had access to the study data and had reviewed and approved the final version of the article.
Supported by the Zhejiang Science and Technology Project, No. LGF18H160012.
Institutional review board statement: The study was reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee of Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital.
Informed consent statement: Patients were not required to provide informed consent to the study because the data were obtained retrospectively after completing treatment.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors received grants from Zhejiang Science and Technology Project during the conduct of the study and declare no other conflict of interest related to this study.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Wei-Ling Hu, MD, PhD, Doctor, Department of Gastroenterology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, No. 3, East Qingchun Road, Hangzhou 310016, Zhejiang Province, China. huweiling@zju.edu.cn
Telephone: +86-571-86006181 Fax: +86-571-86006181
Received: July 1, 2018
Peer-review started: July 2, 2018
First decision: July 25, 2018
Revised: August 16, 2018
Accepted: October 5, 2018
Article in press: October 5, 2018
Published online: October 28, 2018
Abstract
AIM

To evaluate the outcomes of furazolidone- and amoxicillin-based quadruple therapy for treatment of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and identify predictors of failed eradication.

METHODS

Patients with H. pylori infection treated with furazolidone, amoxicillin, bismuth, and proton pump inhibitor therapy (January 2015 to December 2015) who received the 13C-urea breath test > 4 wk after treatment were evaluated. Demographic and clinical data including prior H. pylori treatment attempts, medication adherence, alcohol and cigarette consumption during therapy, and treatment-related adverse events were recorded by reviewing medical records and telephone surveys. H. pylori eradication rates for overall and subgroups were evaluated. Multivariate analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of failed H. pylori eradication.

RESULTS

Of the 992 patients treated and retested for H. pylori infection, the overall eradication rate was 94.5% [95% confidence interval (CI): 94.1%-95.9%]. H. pylori eradication rate of primary therapy was 95.0% (95%CI: 93.5%-96.5%), while that of rescue therapy was 91.3% (95%CI: 86.8%-95.8%). Among the 859 patients who completed the study protocol, 144 (17%) reported treatment-related adverse events including 24 (3%) leading to premature discontinuation. On multivariate analysis, poor medication adherence [adjusted odds ratio (AOR) = 6.7, 95%CI: 2.8-15.8], two or more previous H. pylori treatments (AOR = 7.4, 95%CI: 2.2-24.9), alcohol consumption during therapy (AOR = 4.4, 95%CI: 1.5-12.3), and possibly smoking during therapy (AOR = 1.9, 95%CI: 0.9-4.3) were associated with failed H. pylori eradication.

CONCLUSION

Furazolidone- and amoxicillin-based quadruple therapy for H. pylori infection in an area with a high prevalence of clarithromycin resistance demonstrated high eradication rates as primary and rescue therapies with a favorable safety profile. Patient education targeting abstinence from alcohol during therapy and strict medication adherence may further optimize H. pylori eradication.

Keywords: Helicobacter pylori, Furazolidone, Quadruple regimen, Side effects, Eradication

Core tip: This study examined the outcomes of furazolidone- and amoxicillin-based quadruple therapy as both primary and rescue therapies for Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection in nearly a thousand patients. Detailed data on adverse events and factors associated with failed H. pylori eradication were evaluated. Furazolidone- and amoxicillin-based quadruple therapy demonstrated a high H. pylori eradication rate exceeding 90% with a favorable safety profile in a real-world setting. Abstinence from alcohol during therapy and strict medication adherence may further optimize eradication. The results validate updated guidelines recommending furazolidone-based quadruple therapy as a first-line treatment for H. pylori infection in areas with a high prevalence of clarithromycin resistance.