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Duodenal ulcer, a condition in which the wall of the small intestine develops painful, sometimes bleeding lesions, is thought to result from an imbalance between the protective effects of the gastrointestinal mucosa (lining) and the destructive effects of hydrochloric acid produced by the stomach. A standard therapeutic approach to the treatment of duodenal ulcer is the administration of drugs that reduced gastric acid secretion. However, there is controversy over what might be the most effective regimen for administration of acid antisecretory or antacid drugs. Additionally, there has been debate over the effectiveness of over-the-counter (OTC) antacid medications which simply neutralize gastric acid (rather than preventing secretion, as most prescription ulcer medications do). A comparative evaluation of the effectiveness of a widely used antisecretory drug (cimetidine, a blocker of histamine H2 receptors) and an OTC antacid (magaldrate) was carried out in a group of 371 consecutive ulcer patients who were being treated at a Brazilian ulcer clinic. The standard therapeutic dose of cimetidine (800 milligrams) was given once per day to one group of patients, and one of three very-low-dose regimens of OTC antacid was given to the other groups of patients. The healing rates in the patients administered antacid were higher at both four and eight weeks than in the cimetidine group. Healing rates in this study were not affected by age, sex, symptoms at entry, presence or absence of night pain, or coffee consumption. In the cimetidine-treated group, smoking was associated with a slower healing rate, but there was no association between smoking status and healing rate in the antacid groups. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

An epidemiological survey of the prevalence of hepatitis B virus (HBV) was conducted in the county of Nossa Senhora do Livramento, Mato Grosso state, central Brazil. This rural county has a largely stationary population of low socio-economic status, and is divided into savannah-type vegetation and wetland. Overall, 740 subjects aged 9 years were selected at random, interviewed and bled so that seropositivities of various HBV markers (surface antigen and antibodies to this antigen and to core antigen) could be determined. At least one marker was found in 169 (22.8%) of the subjects but only nine (1.2%) carried the surface antigen. Vegetation type (wetland v . savannah) was not associated with HBV infection but male gender, increasing age, and having had sexual experience were each associated with the infection. The prevalence of HBV markers was higher in immigrants (32.5%) than in native individuals (21.1%), many immigrants apparently having acquired the infection before settling in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]