Influence of obstructive jaundice on acute gastric ulcer, intragastric pH and potential difference in rats

To elucidate the influence of obstructive jaundice on the process of acute ulceration of the stomach under stress loading and to investigate the preventative effect of vagotomy, a series of experimental studies were carried out using SD rats. Animals were divided into four groups: Control, jaundice, vagotomy and jaundice with vagotomy. Each group was subjected to the water immersion-restraint stress and changes in the potential difference of gastric mucosa (PD), the intragastric pH (pH) and the score of ulcer index at sacrifice (UI) were measured. The process of acute ulceration under the stress loading was shown to be accelerated by the weakening of defensive factors in the case of obstructive jaundice. To monitor changes of pH and PD was found to be useful to predict the manifestation of gastric lesion. Vagotomy seemed to be partly effective to prevent the ulceration evidenced by lowering aggressive facter (an increase of pH), but it may also decrease the defensive factor because the vagotomy produced a significant lowering of PD.