[Gastric juice acidity and intragastric proteolysis in stomach ulcer]

Gastric acidity was evaluated, using the histamine test (Key's test), measurement of nocturnal gastric secretion and gastric pH-metry, in 174 patients with gastric ulcers. Acidity proved to be lowered in 25% of gastric ulcers patients, normal in 30% and increased in nearly half of the patients. Intragastric proteolysis was studied in 48 individuals, including 27 patients with peptic ulcers and 21 normal controls. It was found to be normal in the overwhelming majority of peptic ulcer patients (74%). It is concluded that intragastric proteolysis can only be regarded as an aggressive factor, resulting in the formation of a gastric ulcer, when it is combined with high acidity.