***TASK*** the task is to summarize an input biomedical literature in six sentences 
    ***INPUT*** the input is a biomedical literature 
    ***OUTPUT*** the output is the summary of an input biomedical literature in six sentences 
    ***DOCUMENTATION*** 
    ***EXAMPLES*** 
    Input: Abstract Three r and omised groups of 20 patients with gastro-œsophageal reflux were studied using 15-hour recordings of lower œsophageal pH , before and after two weeks ' treatment , either with an alginate/antacid compound ( ' Gaviscon ' ) , antacids alone , or a placebo tablet . Significant reduction in the number of reflux episodes and percentage time during which the lower œsophageal pH was acid was noted in the gaviscon group after treatment , whereas no significant changes occurred in the other two groups . Symptoms reported by patients during the second test were fewer after gaviscon treatment than after antacid alone The symptomatic effect of a 2-week low-dose antacid tablet regimen was assessed in a prospect i ve , double-blind , r and omized , placebo-controlled , crossover trial in 47 patients with endoscopically verified reflux oesophagitis . During treatment with antacid there were lower global symptomatic scores ( p less than 0.05 ) , less acid regurgitation ( p less than 0.05 ) , and fewer days ( p less than 0.01 ) and nights ( p less than 0.05 ) with heartburn than during placebo therapy . Also , significantly more patients preferred antacid than placebo treatment ( p less than 0.05 ) . Thus , a low-dose antacid tablet regimen relieves symptoms significantly better than placebo in patients with reflux oesophagitis Although antacids have been the mainstay of pharmacologic therapy for reflux esophagitis , their effectiveness has not been tested in a placebo-controlled double-blind trial . We report a double-blind comparison of liquid antacid vs placebo in the treatment of reflux esophagitis in 32 patients with chronic heartburn . Entry criteria included the presence of symptomatic gastroesophageal reflux confirmed by both an acid perfusion ( Bernstein ) test and by intraesophageal pH probe . Drug treatment consisted of 15 ml ( 80 mEq ) doses of antacid ( Maalox Therapeutic Concentration , William H. Rorer ) or placebo taken 7 times daily , ie , 1 and 3 hr after meals and at bedtime . Both groups showed significant improvement ( P<0.05 ) in both frequency and severity of heartburn . The time to reproduce heartburn with the timed Bernstein test was increased with both active drug and placebo therapy . The mean increase was 402 % ( 41±20 sec to 169±66 sec ) for the placebo group and 286 % ( 42±16 to 120±57 sec ) in the antacid group . Both the antacid and placebo groups showed improvement in the degree of esophagitis as assessed endoscopically . The current study asked : does regular antacid therapy have a favorable influence on the natural history of symptomatic reflux esophagitis , ie , does therapy heal or otherwise change esophagitis so that painful episodes are either less frequent , less severe , or both ? We found that the natural history of symptomatic reflux esophagitis was to improve with either antacid or placebo . There was no significant difference in antacid or placebo on the ( short-term ) natural history of the disease BACKGROUND Heartburn is frequently associated with overindulgence in food and drink , meal-stimulated gastric acid secretion , and a gastroesophageal reflux with a pH of 4 or lower . Nizatidine is a selective histamine2 receptor antagonist that effectively suppresses gastric acid secretion at lower than prescription doses and has been approved for nonprescription use in the prevention of postpr and ial heartburn . OBJECTIVE To examine the relative effectiveness of 3 dose levels of nizatidine ( 225 mg , 75 mg , and 25 mg ) in preventing postpr and ial heartburn . METHODS Four hundred thirteen subjects with documented moderate to severe heartburn following a st and ard meal that provoked heartburn were r and omized to receive a single dose of nizatidine at 225 mg ( n = 104 ) , 75 mg ( n = 101 ) , or 25 mg ( n = 105 ) , or placebo ( n = 103 ) 30 minutes before the meal , at 30 minutes ( immediately after completing the meal ) , and at 60 , 90 , 120 , 150 , 180 , and 210 minutes ( from beginning the meal ) , subjects assessed the presence or absence of heartburn ( yes or no ) and the severity of heartburn ( 100-mm visual analog scale ) . RESULTS The use of both 225 mg and 75 mg of nizatidine were significantly better than placebo in preventing heartburn in the proportion of subjects with complete prevention of heartburn ( 15 [ 14.4 % ] and 15 [ 14.9 % ] , respectively , vs 3 [ 2.9 % ] ; P < .001 ) ; the effects of nizatidine , 25 mg , in 7 subjects ( 7 % ) were not distinguishable from placebo . Similar results for nizatidine , 225 mg and 75 mg , were seen for longest duration of no heartburn , total duration of no heartburn , the average severity of heartburn , and the peak heartburn severity . All 3 doses of nizatidine were superior to placebo ( P < .001 ) in reducing average and peak heartburn severity and were well tolerated . CONCLUSIONS Single doses of 225 mg and 75 mg of nizatidine administered 30 minutes before a st and ard meal intended to provoke heartburn are significantly more effective than placebo for the prevention and /or reduction of postpr and ial heartburn A double-blind , placebo-controlled , r and omized crossover study was made of 60 patients with chronic heartburn to test the efficacy of foaming antacid in promoting symptom relief . Heartburn was induced by a meal consisting of chili , black coffee , and a spicy tomato drink mix . Of the 60 patients , 40 ( 67 % ) had relief within 15 minutes after taking foaming antacid tablets as compared to only 17 ( 28 % ) after taking a placebo . The difference in response was significant ( P < .05 ) . Foaming antacid appears to be an effective therapy for acute postpr and ial heartburn To compare the effects of ranitidine 75 mg with those of either cimetidine 200 mg or placebo given on dem and for relief of typical symptoms of gastro‐oesophageal reflux disease during a 15‐day period Summary Twenty-eight patients with hiatus hernia and severe symptoms of oesophageal reflux completed a double-blind cross-over trial in which compounds design ed to float on gastric contents were administered . Each patient received an alginate/antacid compound ( ‘ Gaviscon ’ ) , alginate without antacid and ‘ placebo ’ inr and omized order for periods of two weeks . Significant relief of both regurgitation and heartburn was achieved with the alginate I antacid compound despite its low antacid content . The mode of action of alginate is discussed and , as alginate without antacid is only marginally better than placebo , it seems probable that it facilitates placement of antacid in the upper stomach and lower oesophagus . † ‘ Gaviscon ’ is a trade mark of Reckitt and Colman Limited 
    Output:
    
Over-the-counter medications are effective in treating  symptomatic gastro-oesophageal reflux disease .