Nocturnal Gastric Acid Secretion: Its Importance in the Pathophysiology and Rational Therapy of Duodenal Ulcer

The importance of nocturnal acid secretion has long been acknowledged. The aim of therapy at present is to control acid secretion throughout the entire 24-h period. However, the fact that in DU patients a 400-mg nighttime dose of cimetidine is more effective than a 200-mg one, along with the observation that poorly responsive patients also show little decrease in H+ activity, suggests that a larger single nocturnal dose is an effective primary …