Gastric myoelectrical activity in patients with recurrent gastric or duodenal ulcers

The aim of this study was to characterize gastric myoelectrical activity in patients with recurrent gastric ulcer (GU) or duodenal ulcer (DU), and to compare gastric motility between these two groups of patients. Studies were performed in 59 patients with recurrent active peptic-ulcer disease as diagnosed by gastrointestinal endoscopy: 31 patients had a GU and 28 patients had a DU. Gastric myoelectrical activity was evaluated by cutaneous electro-gastrography (EGG). The following EGG parameters were assessed: the percentage of normogastria (regular 2.4-3.6 cpm slow waves); the EGG power ratio; and the occurrence of a postprandial dip (PD), which is the transient decrease in EGG frequency after a meal. In the GU group, no significant change occurred in the percentage of normogastria or in the EGG power ratio observed after treatment with a proton-pump inhibitor. During the healed stage, the occurrence of PD remained unchanged. In contrast, in the DU group, the percentage of normogastria and the EGG power ratio were significantly increased after treatment. Moreover, during the healed stage, the occurrence of PD significantly increased compared with that during the active stage. These findings suggest that abnormal gastric myoelectrical activity plays an important role in the pathophysiology of recurrent GU rather than DU.