Nizatidine ameliorates gastroparesis in Parkinson's disease: A pilot study

Background The objective of this work was to perform an open trial of the effects of nizatidine (NZT), a selective histamine H2‐receptor antagonist and a cholinomimetic, on gastroparesis in Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, using objective parameters given by a gastric emptying study using a 13 C‐sodium acetate expiration breath test. Methods Twenty patients with PD were enrolled in the study. There were 13 men and 7 women; aged 68.0 ± 7.72 years; disease duration 5.50 ± 3.62 years. All patients underwent the breath test and a gastrointestinal questionnaire before and after 3 months of administration of NZT at 300 mg/day. Statistical analysis was performed by Student t test. Results NZT was well tolerated by all patients and none had abdominal pain or other adverse effects. NZT significantly shortened Tmax ( 13 C) (the peak time of the 13 C‐dose‐excess curve) ( P  < 0.05). Conclusions Although this is a pilot study, we found a significant shortening of gastric emptying time after administration of NZT in PD patients. © 2013 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society