Jebbink and colleagues conducted a study to evaluate the effect of ranitidine in patients with functional dyspepsia.

This prospective double blind cross-over study included 30 patients with chronic upper abdominal symptoms, without a somatic cause. The mean symptom score of nausea, vomiting, retrosternal pain, epigastric pain, heartburn, bloating, belching, and early satiety was > 2. The patients were required to document the severity and frequency of the symptoms in a diary which was used to score the symptoms during treatment with ranitidine or placebo, each for 2 weeks with a washout period of 3 days. A total of 29 patients scored correctly.

Overall, 13 (43%) patients had dysmotility-like dyspepsia, 5 (17%) had reflux-like dyspepsia, and 11 (40%) had non-specific dyspepsia (combination of dysmotility-like, reflux-like or ulcer-like symptoms).

Use of ranitidine was associated with a significant improvement in the severity of heartburn after two weeks of treatment, in comparison with placebo (p = 0.035), especially in the patients with reflux-like dyspepsia.

To conclude, within the group of patients with functional dyspepsia, a subgroup of patients having reflux-like dyspepsia can be identified which responds well to ranitidine therapy.

Source: Jebbink HJ, Smout AJ, van Berge Henegouwen GP. Ranitidine therapeutically effective in functional dyspepsia with reflux-like symptoms. Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd. 1993 Aug 28;137(35):1772-5.