Working in tandem

A two-drug therapy that promises to
cure stomach ulcers and prevent
their recurrence has been approved
by the US Food and Drug Administration. Under the newly approved
regimen, patients will take the existing ulcer drug Prilosec in conjunction with an antibiotic called Biaxin
for 14 days, then continue to take
Prilosec for an additional 13 days.
Since the high stomach acid concentration found in most ulcer patients
can break down the antibiotic ifitis
taken by itself, the Prilosec is used to
abate the acid, so the Biaxin can kill
the ulcer bacteria, Helicobacter
pylori. Tests show that the combination healed almost 90 per cent of
ulcers and eradicated the H pylori
infection by 64 per cent.