Original Article J. Clin. Biochem. Nutr., 40, 148–155, March 2007 Comparison of Prevention of NSAID-Induced Gastrointestinal Complications by Rebamipide and Misoprostol: A Randomized, Multicenter, Controlled Trial—STORM STUDY Soo-Heon Park1,*, Chul-Soo Cho1, Oh-Young Lee2, Jae-Bum Jun2, San-Ren Lin3, Li-Ya Zhou3, Yao-Zong Yuan4, Zhao-Shen Li5, Xiao-Hua Hou6, Hong-Chuan Zhao7, Udom Kachintorn8, Chomsri Kositchaiwat9, and Comson Lertkupinit10 1St. Mary’s Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul 150-713, Korea 2Hanyang University Hospital, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-792, Korea 3The Third Hospital, Peking University, Beijing 100083, China 4Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Second Medical University, Shanghai 200025, China 5Changhai Hospital, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai 2000433, China 6Union Hospital of Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430022, China 7Beijing China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Beijing 100029, China 8Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok 10700, Thailand 9Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok 10400, Thailand 10Chonburi Hospital, Chonburi 20000, Thailand Received 10 August, 2006; Accepted 7 November, 2006 Summary Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) have gastrointestinal side effects such as dyspepsia, peptic ulcer, hemorrhage, and perforation. Misoprostol and PPIs have been used to prevent NSAID-induced gastroduodenal injury. Rebamipide increases gastric mucus and stimulates the production of endogenous prostaglandins. The prophylactic effect of rebamipide on NSAID-induced gastrointestinal complications is unknown. The aim of this study was to compare NSAID-induced gastrointestinal complications in rebamipide- and misoprostol-treated groups. Patients were randomized to two groups and took a conventional NSAID plus rebamipide or misoprostol for 12 weeks. Gastric mucosal damage was evaluated by endoscopy at screening and the end of the study. The prevalences of active gastric ulcer were 7/176 (3.9%) in the rebamipide group and 3/156 (1.9%) in the misoprostol group. The prevalences of peptic ulcer were 8/176 (4.5%) in the rebamipide group and 7/156 (4.4%) in the misoprostol group. The cumulative incidences of peptic ulcer in the high-risk subgroup were 6/151 (4.0%) for rebamipide and 6/154 (3.9%) for misoprostol. In conclusion, rebamipide prevented NSAID-induced peptic ulcer as effectively as misoprostol in patients on long-term NSAID therapy. Rebamipide may be a useful therapeutic option for the prevention of NSAID- induced gastrointestinal ulcer because of its therapeutic effect and safety. Key Words: rebamipide, misoprostol, NSAID, gastrointestinal tract, clinical trial *To whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel: +82-2-3779-3029 Fax: +82-2-3779-1331 E-mail: psheon@catholic.ac.kr Abbreviations: NSAID, nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug; PPI, proton pump inhibitor; GERD, gastroesophageal reflux disease; H2RA, histamine 2 receptor antagonist; STORM, Study of NSAID-induced GI Toxicity Prevention by Rebamipide and Miso- prostol. 148