[The quantitative assessment of duodenogastric reflux following operations for perforated duodenal ulcers]

Sixty patients operated for perforated duodenal ulcer were examined for the presence of duodenogastric reflux by quantitative estimation of bilirubin in gastric aspirate for a period of 3 to 6 months after the operation. Twenty healthy subjects served as controls. The operated patients were divided in three groups depending on the type of operation: simple suturing, truncus vagotomy with pyloroplasty according to Heinicke-Mikulicz technique and proximal selective vagotomy with rrhaphy (20 patients in each group). It was shown that duodenogastric reflux following proximal selective vagotomy with rrhaphy was almost as common as in the control group. Peak levels of gastric bilirubin were found after truncus vagotomy with pyloroplasty (2.01 +/- 0.51 mmol/l). A practicable method of examination of bilirubin in gastric juice, which can gain acceptance in every hospital laboratory, is suggested.