Postprandial discomfort

Episodic or chronic sensations of fullness, heaviness or discomfort after meals in patients without confirmed exocrine pancreatic insufficiency. A marketing category for «heaviness-after-meals drugs», not a clinical diagnosis.

ICD-10 K301 drug

Also known as: Generic postprandial heaviness

Marketing claims without evidence base

The drug is promoted for these uses outside international guidelines. Each entry below is analyzed against AEMPS, FDA, EMA, Cochrane and major RCTs.

DPancreatinNot recommended · Digestives. Multienzyme preparationsPancreatin is an enzyme preparation that doctors prescribe for pancreatic insufficiency, and it is also marketed as a remedy for heaviness and discomfort after ordinary meals. For this kind of discomfort, without confirmed enzyme deficiency, pancreatin has not shown convincing benefit – there is no evidence base for this use. If meals regularly bring heaviness, bloating or pain, it is worth discussing the cause with a doctor: reviewing diet and eating habits helps, and enzymes are taken when a genuine deficiency is found.

How to read tiers A–F

Evidence tiers belong to the drug-indication pair, not to the drug as a whole: the same substance can be A for one condition and F for another.

AStrong evidence – first or second line in international guidelines
BRecommended in selected cases
CStudy data contradict each other
DBenefit not proven, no documented harm
FDocumented harm, or risk without benefit