Effects of Low-Dose Amitriptyline on Epigastric Pain Syndrome in Functional Dyspepsia Patients

AIM: To observe the therapeutic effect of low-dose amitriptyline (AMT) on epigastric pain syndrome (EPS) in patients with functional dyspepsia. METHODS: Sixty patients with EPS were randomly divided into the following two groups for a four-week clinical trial: routine treatment with pantoprazole (RT group) and the AMT group. The RT group was treated with 40 mg of pantoprazole once daily. The AMT group received 25 mg of AMT once daily before bedtime. The Nepean Dyspepsia Index (NDI) checklist, Hamilton Rating Scale of Anxiety/Depression (HAMA/HAMD), and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) were employed to evaluate dyspepsia symptoms, psychological distress, and sleep, respectively. RESULTS: All items were similar between the two groups before treatment (0 week). After 4 weeks of treatment, the NDI–symptom checklist score as well as the severity and bothersomeness of EPS in the AMT group was significantly decreased compared with those in the RT group (p < 0.05). However, no differences were found in the frequency of NDI checklist, psychological status (HAMD/HAMA scores) of EPS, or sleep quality (PSQI score) between the two groups after treatment. In addition, the time to fall asleep was shorter in the AMT group compared with the RT group after 4 weeks of treatment (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Low-dose AMT effectively improved the dyspepsia symptoms and the time to fall asleep in the EPS patients, compared with pantoprazole, although it did not reduce the psychological distress. Therefore, AMT could be considered as a good candidate for EPS treatment in the clinic.