Gastric Acid Response to Sham Feeding and Pentagastrin before and after Parietal Cell Vagotomy in Patients with Duodenal Ulcer

Abstract

The influence of sham feeding (PAO_Sh) preceding pentagastrin-stimulated gastric acid secretion (PAO_Pg) was investigated in 28 patients with duodenal ulcer (DU) before vagotomy and in 36 after parietal cell vagotomy (PCV). Sham feeding had little influence on PAO_Pg and it is concluded that the two secretion tests may be combined. The ratio PAO_Sh/PAO_Pg was significantly reduced by PCV. Fourty-four patients with DU were studied for 1 year after PCV. and their PAO_Pg was measured preoperatively and their PAO_Pg and PAO_Sh postoperatively. Seven of the 44 patients had recurrent ulcer within 1 year. PAO_Pg had no predictive value pre- and postoperatively, but postoperative PAO_Sh and PAO_Sh/PAO_Pg were both significantly higher in patients with recurrent ulcer. It is concluded that PAO_Sh and PAO_Sh/PAO_Pg after PCV may assess completeness of vagotomy, but the relationship between PAO_Sh and risk of recurrent ulcer may be stronger than that between PAO_Sh/PAO_Pg and recurrence.

Key-words:

• Duodenal ulcer
• gastric acid
• pentagastrin
• sham feeding
• vagotomy