A double-blind study was made of the comparative effectiveness of
cimetidine in the treatment of acute
alcoholic pancreatitis. The study group was composed of 27 patients with acute episodes of
alcoholic pancreatitis of mild to moderate severity. The patients were randomized into 2 groups, either receiving
cimetidine, 300 mg four times daily or a placebo. Both groups were given intravenous fluids and
meperidine hydrochloride (
Demerol) as needed. There were no significant differences between the 2 groups as measured by a variety of clinical and laboratory parameters. The mean value of the daily serum
amylase in the placebo group declined steadily to normal;
hyperamylasemia in this group persisted for 52 +/- 11 hr (mean +/- SE). By contrast, serum
amylase in the
cimetidine group peaked at 24 hr after the start of treatment and remained abnormal slightly longer; the duration of
hyperamylasemia in the group was 69 +/- 10 hr. It is concluded that: (1)
cimetidine is not superior to a placebo in the management of mild to moderately severe acute
alcoholic pancreatitis and (2) serum
amylase activity in patients with acute
alcoholic pancreatitis given
cimetidine tends to be greater and
hyperamylasemia is of somewhat longer duration than in those treated with a placebo.