Pylorus-preserving gastrectomy for gastric ulcer--one- to nine-year follow-up study

Of 100 patients subjected to pylorus-preserving gastrectomy for surgical treatment of gastric ulcer, 60 were available for follow-up for periods of from one to 9 years. Questionnaires and personal interviews of these 60 and additional laboratory examinations of 40 of them showed results tending to favor the procedure as a highly recommendable technique of gastrectomy. Questions about body weight gain, return to preoperative occupation, and satisfaction with the operation all were answered favorably. In the follow-up laboratory examinations, reduction rates of 57.2 percent for maximal acid concentration, 81.6 percent for maximal acid output, and 70.8 percent for peak acid output. Sphincteric function was generally well preserved on the pyloric ring. Gastric emptying times, ranging from 30 to 180 minutes in 79 percent of the cases, were nearly compatible with the control figures. The results of fat and protein absorption tests performed on some of these patients showed their rates to be within normal ranges. No instances of dumping syndrome, recurrence of ulcer, or other significant postgastrectomy sequelae were recognized. The results indicate pylorus-preserving gastrectomy to be preferable for the surgical treatment of gastric ulcer and other benign lesions of the stomach.