[Gastric and duodenal ulcers and their complications in elderly patients]

Among 1470 patients over 65-year-old who were treated for various diseases, 50 had gastric ulcer and 10 had duodenal ulcer. About half the gastric ulcers were located in the body and fundus (n = 24, 48.0%). One third of the patients with gastric or duodenal ulcers had as their chief complaints hematemesis and hematochezia (n = 20, 33.3%), and a greater number had atypical gastrointestinal complaints (general malaise, fever etc, n = 25, 41.7%). In 10 patients (16.7%) the ulcers were due to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, in 5 (8.3%) they were due to steroid hormones, both of which had been given to treat other conditions; in 45 (75.0%) the origin of the ulcers was unknown. Complications of gastric and duodenal ulcers were hematemesis and hematochezia (n = 20, 33.3%), and perforation (n = 2, 3.3%). Duodenal ulcers tended to be severe, and were associated with death due to bleeding and peritonitis.