Abstract
In 14 patients with peptic ulcer, admitted to hospital for surgical treatment, the lactose tolerance test and a small-intestinal biopsy with disaccharidase (maltase, sucrase, lactase) assays were performed before and 1 month and 6 months after operation. In 10 patients without evident organic disease of the gastrointestinum, the small-intestinal biopsy with disaccharidase assays was repeated at an average interval of 1 week, and these form the control group. The mean maltase, sucrase and lactase activities in the 1 and 6-month follow-up studies were increased over the preoperative values. When the changes were compared with the alterations noted in the control group, no statistically significant difference could be noted. In 3 patients with small-intestinal lactase deficiency the symptoms following lactose tolerance test became worse in one and a history of milk intolerance appeared in one after ulcer surgery.