Helicobacter pylori is one of the main causes of digestive diseases, which is difficult to treat and requires the administration of several antimicrobial agents. Considering the anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effect of atorvastatin, the present study aimed at adding this agent to a four-drug regimen in order to eradicate H. pylori.
A total of 220 patients with H. pylori infection were included in the current randomized, controlled clinical trial. In the current study, 110 patients in the control group received a 14-day regimen of amoxicillin, clarithromycin, bismuth, and esomeprazole, and 110 patients in the intervention group received 40 mg of atorvastatin daily plus the antibiotic regimen for 14 weeks. The treatment results were evaluated one month later using H. pylori stool antigen test. Data were collected using checklist and analyzed using Chi-square and the Fisher exact tests with SPSS version 18.
H. pylori eradication rate in the intervention and control groups were 78.18% and 65.45%, respectively (P = 0.025), and there was a significant difference in terms of NUD between the groups (P = 0.049), but there was no significant difference in age, gender, and body mass index between two groups (P <0.05).
The present study results showed that adding atorvastatin to the four-drug regimen of omeprazole, clarithromycin, bismuth, and amoxicillin is effective in the eradication of H. pylori. Also, the addition of atorvastatin to H. pylori eradication therapy is more effective in patients with non-ulcer dyspepsia (NUD).