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Antibiotic resistance is the critical factor responsible for eradication treatment failure. Because of increasing clarithromycin resistance, first-line triple therapy for Helicobacter pylori (H pylori) infection is currently ineffective in most settings worldwide.
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Treatment results for infectious diseases are best (>90%–95%) when regimens are reliably used to treat patients with organisms susceptible to the antimicrobials chosen. Most eradication therapies, however, are prescribed empirically.
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Practical Aspects in Choosing a Helicobacter pylori Therapy
Section snippets
Key points
Choice of therapy
The strongest predictor of H pylori treatment failure using a regimen proven to be effective elsewhere is antimicrobial resistance. From a microbiological standpoint, treatment results are best when regimens are used to treat patients with organisms susceptible to the antimicrobials chosen. Pretreatment susceptibility testing, either by direct culture of the organism from gastric biopsies or indirectly by molecular testing in gastric biopsies/stools, can be used for this purpose. Nonetheless,
First-line regimens
Available first-line regimens, with preferred drug doses and dosing intervals, along with caveats for each treatment, are summarized in Table 3. The preferred empirical choices are currently 14-day bismuth quadruple therapy or 14-day nonbismuth quadruple concomitant or hybrid (sequential-concomitant) therapy, depending on local resistance pattern, clinical experience, and patient history of antibiotic use.
The Achilles heel of standard triple therapy is clarithromycin resistance. Because of the
Rescue therapy
Even with the current most effective treatment regimens, a variable proportion of patients will fail to eradicate H pylori infection at the first attempt.6, 12 Despite the number of studies, the optimal retreatment regimen has not yet been defined. Our therapeutic target, similar to first-line regimens, should be at least 90% cure rates. The empirical choice of a rescue treatment primarily depends on which treatment was used initially (eg, bismuth or nonbismuth quadruple therapy), the local
Probiotics
Probiotics are live microorganisms or produced substances that are orally administrated, usually in addition to conventional antibiotic therapy for H pylori infection. They may modulate the human microbiota, stimulate the immune response, and directly compete with pathogenic bacteria, besides preventing antibiotic side effects.69 Indeed, probiotics have exhibited inhibitory activity against H pylori in vitro and in vivo.70, 71 Now 10 meta-analyses have been published addressing the specific
Summary
H pylori infection has proven challenging to eradicate because of several bacteria-, environmental-, host-, and drug-associated factors. An effective therapy is defined as one achieving at least a 90% eradication rate with the first attempt. Cure rates of H pylori with triple therapy have declined to unacceptable levels worldwide, mostly because of increasing clarithromycin resistance rates. Therefore, novel first-line treatments are required and should be chosen on local prevalence of H pylori
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Preparation of clarithromycin floating core-shell systems (CSS) using multi-nozzle semi-solid extrusion-based 3D printing
2021, International Journal of PharmaceuticsCitation Excerpt :It was categorized as a type I carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in 1994 (Talebi Bezmin Abadi, 2017). CAM is a poorly-soluble broad-spectrum antibiotic that is recommended as the first-line drug in the standard triple regimen (proton pump inhibitor (PPI), CAM and amoxicillin or metronidazole) against H. pylori (Javier and Akiko, 2015; Talebi Bezmin Abadi, 2017; Peng et al., 2019). Apart from the systemic action (Kihira et al., 1996; Satoh, 1996), GFDDS-mediated administration of CAM can maintain therapeutic concentration of the drug in the stomach and promote its absorption through the mucus layer, thereby enhancing H. pylori eradication (Aoki et al., 2015; Malladi and Jukanti, 2016).
Detection of antimicrobial resistance genes of Helicobacter pylori strains to clarithromycin, metronidazole, amoxicillin and tetracycline among Egyptian patients
2018, Egyptian Journal of Medical Human GeneticsCitation Excerpt :However, the relative risk reduction of each complication varies [16]. Usually, the disease has chronic features unless it is treated by the combination of two proper antimicrobials; clarithromycin and metronidazole or amoxicillin, with proton-pump inhibitor or H2 receptor antagonist [17]. The current treatment of H. pylori is empirical.
Criteria for the eradication of Helicobacter pylori
2018, FMC Formacion Medica Continuada en Atencion PrimariaIV Spanish Consensus Conference on Helicobacter pylori infection treatment
2016, Gastroenterologia y HepatologiaEnsuring the highest eradication rates in H. pylori: the case of non-bismuth quadruple concomitant therapy
2016, European Journal of Internal MedicineCitation Excerpt :In this context, most of the real clinical practice is performed following “empirical” treatments based on literature (prevalence, efficacy, resistance), more than on the individual case. The correct use of the empirical approach for the treatment of H. pylori has two fundamental requisites: accurate estimation on the resistance rates of the target population and, even more importantly, evidence on the efficacy of each treatment according to resistance or in comparable contexts [4–7]. The efficacy of the traditionally recommended triple therapy containing a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) and two antibiotics (usually amoxicillin and clarithromycin) has been deemed sub-optimal (< 90%) [8] in most settings, scoring below 80% efficacy, and significantly inferior to most other treatment regimens in a recently published network meta-analysis [9].
Ten-day empirical sequential or concomitant therapy is more effective than triple therapy for Helicobacter pylori eradication: A multicenter, prospective study
2016, Digestive and Liver DiseaseCitation Excerpt :The lower eradication rates are due primarily to the increased resistance of H. pylori to several major antibiotics, including clarithromycin, metronidazole, and fluoroquinolone, indicating the need for new empirical first-line treatments. Among the most promising of the new therapeutic strategies are the non-bismuth four-drug therapies [7]. These sequential and concomitant regimens add metronidazole to TT for different durations and in different combinations.
Disclosure Statement: The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.