ABSTRACT
Drugs that have been available for a number of years, with known anti-ulcer effect, e.g. colloidal bismuth subcitrate, have quite recently received a resurgence of interest with the finding that they eradicate, at least temporarily, Campylobacter pyloridis from the gastric mucosa of ulcer patients. The role of Campylobacter in contributing to peptic ulcer disease is currently unclear; however, it is likely that further drugs will be developed with antibacterial properties in the hope that they will be effective in healing ulcers and will reduce the relapse rate that occurs following the cessation of treatment with antisecretory agents. There is considerable uncertainty over the correct methodologies to adopt in the early evaluation of anti-ulcer drugs with cytoprotective or antibacterial activity.
