Gastric hypermotility and antropyloric dysfunction in gastric ulcer patients

Impaired gastric emptying in gastric ulcer patients has been explained by gastric hypomotility. Amplitude and duration of the contraction and integrated motor response to an electrical vagal stimulus, however, have been found to be significantly greater in 21 GU patients than in 25 DU and 6 combined ulcer patients. This shows hypermotility of the gastric muscle in GU patients. Delayed gastric emptying in GU disease, therefore, seems to result rather from antropyloric motor dysfunction than from gastric hypotony. Abnormal motility associated with duodeno-gastric reflux appears to be a key feature in the pathogenesis of gastric ulcer.