The Aarhus County Vagotomy Trial: trends in the problem of recurrent ulcer after parietal cell vagotomy and selective gastric vagotomy with drainage

Is it really more difficult to treat prepyloric ulcers?

Prepyloric and duodenal ulcers have some common characteristics: gastric acid secretion is increased and there is an association with blood group O. Many, therefore, have considered prepyloric ulcers to be a variety of duodenal ulcer disease. From an anatomical point of view, however, prepyloric ulcers are clearly gastric ulcers. After proximal selective vagotomy, the recurrence rate is very high, amounting to more than 30% in 5 years; this is significantly higher than the rate for duodenal ulcers. Better results are obtained in prepyloric ulcers, if vagotomy is combined with a drainage procedure. In recent years, some evidence, primarily from Scandinavia, has accumulated indicating that prepyloric ulcers are more resistant to treatment with histamine H2-receptor antagonists than duodenal ulcers or ulcers located in other parts of the stomach. In addition, the recurrence rate is particularly high in prepyloric ulcers. One must, however, consider that not only have all of these studies included relatively small numbers of patients, but also the prepyloric ulcer healing rates in other studies were similar to those observed for both duodenal ulcers and ulcers located elsewhere in the stomach. Prospective studies with large numbers of patients are, therefore, necessary before a clear-cut conclusion can be reached. There are several reasons why prepyloric ulcers could be more resistant to treatment. Impaired gastric emptying, duodeno-gastric reflux or chronic gastritis, especially in conjunction with Campylobacter pylori infection, must be considered. At present, one can only speculate on the validity of any of these hypotheses.

Long-term results of duodenectomy with highly selective vagotomy in the treatment of complicated duodenal ulcers

BACKGROUND

Highly selective vagotomy and complete circular or partial duodenectomy have been applied to complicated duodenal ulcer for many years. These procedures seem to provide better clinical results than truncal vagotomy and antrectomy.

METHODS

A retrospective analysis was conducted of 120 patients with complicated duodenal ulcer who underwent surgical treatment between 1986 and 1999. Patients with obstruction were treated with either circular complete (17) or partial duodenectomy (3) combined with highly selective vagotomy or truncal vagotomy and antrectomy (37). Those with perforation were treated primarily with highly selective vagotomy and partial duodenectomy, highly selective vagotomy alone, or truncal vagotomy and pyloroplasty. Every patient was followed up either by a clinic visit (75%) or questionnaire to determine the presence of ulcer pain, dumping, diarrhea, vomiting, weight loss, and Visick grade.

RESULTS

Long-term follow-up of patients treated with duodenectomy and highly selective vagotomy for obstruction showed that 94% had sustained weight gain whereas more than half of those treated with truncal vagotomy and antrectomy had weight loss. In patients with perforation, duodenectomy and highly selective vagotomy offered no advantage over highly selective vagotomy alone.

CONCLUSIONS

Highly selective vagotomy and complete circular or partial duodenectomy provide fewer sequelae and better weight gain long term than truncal vagotomy and antrectomy for patients with obstructing duodenal ulcers.

Abdominal and dyspeptic symptoms in patients with peptic ulcer treated medically or surgically

BACKGROUND

Abdominal and dyspeptic complaints, which are prominent symptoms in patients with peptic ulceration, are commonly reported in the general population. There are few reports of follow-up study of peptic ulcer therapies in which clinical outcome has been compared with symptom reporting in community controls.

METHODS

Three populations of patients with peptic ulcer disease (patients who had elective proximal gastric vagotomy (PGV), those having PGV for emergency indications and those receiving medical treatment with H2-receptor antagonists) were included in a questionnaire survey and compared with a group of randomly selected community controls.

RESULTS

The vagotomized patients reported fewer abdominal complaints (P = 0.0003) and fewer dyspeptic complaints lasting for more than 1 week (P = 0.05) than those treated medically. There was no significant difference between vagotomized patients and community controls in the reporting of abdominal (P = 0.2) or dyspeptic (P = 0.9) complaints.

CONCLUSION

Taking abdominal complaints as the endpoint for former peptic ulcer treatment, surgical treatment with PGV seemed to be superior to therapy with H2-receptor antagonists and produced an almost identical level of complaints to that seen in the community population.

Peptic disease: can we afford current management?

BACKGROUND

While surgery has the potential to cure peptic disease (ulceration and reflux), the development in the 1970s of H2 receptor antagonists saw them replace surgery in the management of peptic symptoms, controlling disease while the medication was taken. Medical cure at least in the case of a duodenal ulcer is now also possible by the use of anti-Helicobacter therapy.

METHODS

Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) and Medicare data on the treatment of peptic disease were reviewed.

RESULTS

The data showed that medical cure of duodenal ulcer is rarely attempted. While elective surgical treatment for duodenal ulcer, highly selective vagotomy, has decreased 10-fold in 10 years, prescriptions for antisecretory agents (H2 and proton pump) are doubling every 2 years (increasing from 6.7 to 7.8% of PBS budget). Meanwhile upper gastrointestinal endoscopy rates are doubling every 5 years. By comparison, the most appropriate treatment, anti-Helicobacter therapy, is prescribed at 1/50th the rate of antisecretory agents and over 2 years decreased to 1/80th. Antisecretory treatment has not been effective in reducing mortality from duodenal ulcer, at least not in New South Wales.

CONCLUSIONS

If the principle of treatment is to decrease cost and prevent complications by curing duodenal ulcer, then current practice is a failure. A management algorithm for peptic symptoms which has the potential to relieve symptoms, cure ulcer when present, minimize surgery and reduce complications and cost is proposed for the purpose of debate.

Long-term clinical results of highly selective vagotomy performed between 1980 and 1990

A retrospective analysis was conducted of 778 patients who underwent highly selective vagotomy between 1980 and 1990. Surgery was performed for duodenal ulcers without any complications in 485 (62.3%) patients; for duodenal ulcers with complications such as stenosis, bleeding, or perforation in 270 (34.7%); for combined duodenal and ventricular ulcers in 12 (1.5%), and for ventricular ulcers alone in 11 (1.4%). Pyloroplasty was additionally performed in the presence of complications only. The incidence of intraoperative complications proved to be as high as 1.4%, occurring in 11 patients, while postoperative complications developed in 247 patients (31.7%). Although the overall mortality was 0.6% (5 patients), the mortality rate of those patients who underwent surgery for uncomplicated ulcer disease was 0.2% only (2 patients). The patients comprised 554 men (71.2%) and 224 women (28.8%) with an average age of 41.4 +/- 0.7 years. The average duration of duodenal ulcer disease was 9.5 years, and 643 (83.2%) of the patients were able to be regularly followed up for between 3 and 13 years. Recurrence developed in 62 patients (9.6%): in the duodenum in 57 patients (91.9%), and in the stomach in 5 (8.1%). The rate of recurrence according to sex was 9.4% in men and 10.3% in women, being 42 and 20 patients, respectively. The average duration until recurrence appeared was 27.06 +/- 3.44 months. A reoperation proved necessary in 28 of these 62 patients (45.1%). The clinical results were evaluated by means of a modified Visick classification, according to which 81.8% of the patients belonged to groups 1 or 2, 7.9% to group 3, and 10.3% to group 4.

Laparoscopic management of peptic ulcer disease

Laparoscopic surgery has heralded a new era for the operative management of peptic ulcer disease. With a mean hospital stay of 3.5 days,22 a recurrence rate of 4% to 11%,1,3 and a morbidity from dumping and diarrhea of 1% to 2%,21 laparoscopic proximal gastric vagotomy can truly provide a good alternative to medical therapy. Despite the high cost of medical care and surgical equipment, a laparoscopic vagotomy should be cost effective compared with life-long pharmacologic management of peptic ulcer disease. Several different operative procedures have been discussed, with similar outcomes. The surgeon has a choice of several approaches, depending on his or her training and level of skill. As surgeons gain experience with laparoscopic surgery, we are able to offer consistently good results with low recurrence rates and negligible morbidity and mortality. Minimally invasive surgery has rekindled the operative treatment of peptic ulcer disease.

Peptic ulcer pathophysiology: acid, bicarbonate, and mucosal function

The previously accepted role of gastric acid hypersecretion in peptic ulcer disease has been modified by studies showing no correlation between acid output and clinical outcome of ulcer disease, or between ulcer recurrence rate after vagotomy and preoperative acid secretion. At the same time, studies have been unable to demonstrate increased acidity in the duodenal bulb in patients with duodenal ulcer, and consequently more emphasis has been given to the mucosal protecting mechanisms. The existence of an active gastric and duodenal mucosal bicarbonate secretion creates a pH gradient from the luminal acid to near neutrality at the surface of the epithelial cells, thereby acting as an important mucosal defence mechanism. The regulation of bicarbonate secretion is a complex process related to motility and neural activity. Stimulation is by acid, PGE2, NO, VIP, cAMP, and mucosal protective agents. Bicarbonate secretion is inhibited by atropine, muscarinic antagonists, alpha-adrenoceptor agonists, indomethacin, bile acids, tobacco smoking, and probably also by infection by Helicobacter pylori. Apart from mucus and bicarbonate, the mucosal defence is supported by a hydrophobic epithelial lining, rapid cell removal and repair regulated by epidermal growth factor. Sufficient mucosal blood flow, including a normal acid/base balance, is important for subepithelial protection. In today's model of ulcer pathogenesis, gastric acid and H. pylori work in concert as aggressive factors, with the open question being: why does only a fraction of the infected population develop an ulcer?

Vagotomy

Peptic ulcer disease was for years a common indication for surgery in Danish hospitals and considerable experience in partial gastrectomy was gained. In spite of an unquestionable mortality rate and a number of patients having postgastrectomy complaints, results were generally recognized as acceptable. Danish surgeons were for long reluctant to take up vagotomy and drainage as a primary ulcer operation, but when they did start a large number of procedures were performed. In fact, the use of this treatment culminated during two to three decades. However, on a basis of experiences from these years, Danish research contributed actively to the international evolution of the surgical vagotomy technique, the evaluation of clinical results and the studies of postoperative alterations in gastric physiology. References are selected from an extensive literature and are in no way complete.

Twenty years after parietal cell vagotomy or selective vagotomy antrectomy for treatment of duodenal ulcer. Final report

OBJECTIVE

This study was a prospective, randomized evaluation of parietal cell vagotomy (PCV) and selective vagotomy-antrectomy (SV-A) in the treatment of duodenal ulcer.

BACKGROUND DATA

Operative treatment of duodenal ulcer is associated with mortality and mechanical and metabolic morbidity. At the time that surgeons appear to have succeeded in developing operations with low morbidity and mortality, the number of patients requiring elective operation has decreased partly because of the simultaneous, dramatic improvement in medical therapy. Nevertheless, surgical therapy still is important, especially in certain socioeconomic environments.

METHODS

After a pilot study of PCV, 200 patients with duodenal ulcers were randomized to PCV or SV-A. One surgeon was responsible for the operations and follow-up studies. An attempt was made to evaluate all patients annually in the hospital. Gastric analyses were performed on each visit, for which the patient gave his/her consent.

RESULTS

There was no operative mortality. The recurrence rate-by-life table analysis was less (p < 0.003) after SV-A than PCV. Dumping was greater (p < 0.001), and there was no difference in the frequency of diarrhea after SV-A compared with PCV. The percentage of patients with grades Visick I or Visick II was not different for the two operations, but more patients were graded Visick I after PCV than after SV-A.

CONCLUSIONS

Selective vagotomy-antrectomy and parietal cell vagotomy are effective and safe operations, when used appropriately. Selective vagotomy-antrectomy is preferable for patients with pyloric and prepyloric ulcers and pyloric obstruction. Parietal cell vagotomy is the authors' choice for duodenal ulcer patients because of the occasional patient who becomes disabled by SV-A.

Circadian acidity pattern in prepyloric ulcers: a comparison with normal subjects and duodenal ulcer patients

We used continuous 24-h pH monitoring to compare the circadian intragastric acidity of 36 patients with prepyloric ulcers (PPU) with that of 101 normal subjects (NS) and that of 206 patients with duodenal ulcer (DU). The ulcer crater was endoscopically ascertained in all cases, and PPU were located within an area up to 2 cm proximal to the pylorus. The pH curve pertaining to DU patients ran below that of NS during most of the circadian period, whereas the pH profile of PPU patients was higher than that of NS, and this was particularly true during the evening and the night. The acidity of PPU patients was significantly lower (p < 0.01) than that of NS during the night only, whereas it was lower (p < 0.05-0.001) than that of DU patients during each time interval analysed (24 h, nighttime, and daytime). Our findings show that the gastric acidity of PPU patients differs greatly from that of DU patients, since it is lower throughout the whole 24-h period, and particularly during the night. Thus these two entities are pathophysiologically different with regard to the acidity pattern and should be considered two distinct subgroups of peptic ulcer disease instead of being incorporated, as usually happens, in the clinical group 'duodenal ulcer disease'.

Prospective randomized study comparing three surgical techniques for the treatment of gastric outlet obstruction secondary to duodenal ulcer

A prospective randomized clinical trial was performed in order to evaluate the results of three surgical techniques for the treatment of gastric outlet obstruction secondary to duodenal ulcer. Ninety patients with clinical and laboratory evidence of gastric retention were enrolled. After laparotomy, patients underwent either highly selective vagotomy (HSV) + gastrojejunostomy, HSV + Jaboulay gastroduodenostomy, or selective vagotomy (SV) + antrectomy. One patient died after HSV + Jaboulay gastroduodenostomy due to postoperative acute pancreatitis. There were no differences in the postoperative course of the three groups. Patients were followed for a mean of 98 months (range: 30 to 156 months). There was a significantly better result after HSV + gastrojejunostomy than after Jaboulay anastomosis (p < 0.01), but not after SV + antrectomy. Gastric acid reduction was similar in the small group of patients studied. We propose HSV + gastrojejunostomy as the treatment of choice in patients with duodenal ulcer and gastric outlet obstruction.

Relationship between gastric acid secretion and the rate of recurrent ulcer after parietal cell vagotomy

OBJECTIVE

This study assessed the effect of gastric secretion on the rate of recurrent ulcer after parietal cell vagotomy for duodenal ulcer.

SUMMARY BACKGROUND DATA

Three hundred patients who underwent parietal cell vagotomy for duodenal ulcer between 1975 and 1986 were evaluated. The mean follow-up period for 280 patients was 5 years.

METHODS

The gastric secretion tests concerned basal acid output (BAO) and peak acid output stimulated by pentagastrin or insulin. Tests were preoperative for 172 patients and postoperative for 118.

RESULTS

At the end of that time, the overall incidence of symptomatic recurrent ulcer was 15%. Two criteria were shown to be important predictors of recurrent ulcer: preoperative BAO > 7 mmol/hr, for which the recurrence rate 5 years after vagotomy was 30% versus 11% for values below this threshold (p = 0.01), and postoperative BAO > 1.4 mmol/hr, for which the recurrence rate at 5 years was 72% versus 8% for lower values (p = 0.0001). All patients with recurrent ulcer had either a postoperative BAO > 7 mmol/hr and/or a postoperative reduction in BAO < 80%.

CONCLUSION

Preoperative BAO > 7 mmol/hr and postoperative BAO > 1.4 mmol/hr were shown to be factors predictive of RU. All patients with RU presented either with preoperative BAO > 7 mmol/hr and/or a reduction in BAO < 80%. Consequently, in our opinion, these criteria could be used either to select patients for vagotomy or to assess the effectiveness of vagotomy of different types, especially those performed by celioscopy.

[Results of selective proximal vagotomy after 13 years]

This study reports the long-term results of 216 patients after highly selective vagotomy (HSV) for duodenal ulcers operated from 1970 through 1978 with a mean follow-up of 12.8 years (8.3-15). 26 patients developed symptomatic ulcer recurrences (12%) within 4 to 135 months following surgery, the cumulative recurrence rate (Kaplan-Meier) at 13 years was 20.3%. Acidity analyses showed a postoperative mean reduction of basal acid output (BAO) and maximal acid output (MAO) values of 80.7% and 74.8% respectively with no differences according to recurrences. The risk of recurrence was similar for duodenal (22/194) and pyloric ulcers (4/22) and no differences were found with respect to sex, additional drainage procedure, smoking habits, acute or elective operation and first or recurrent ulcers. Risk was slightly higher for complicated ulcers (p less than or equal to 0.07), but without reaching statistical significance. 78.5% of patients showed (very) good results (Visick I or II), only 6% were Visick III. HSV is therefore regarded as a valuable therapeutic measure for the treatment of duodenal ulcer independent of patient compliance.

24-hour intragastric acidity and plasma gastrin after omeprazole treatment and after proximal gastric vagotomy in duodenal ulcer patients

The relationship between suppressed gastric acidity and the increase in plasma gastrin levels after pharmacological and surgical treatment of peptic ulcer disease were compared in this study. Eight patients with chronic duodenal ulcer and referred for proximal gastric vagotomy were studied. 24-hour intragastric acidity and plasma gastrin levels were investigated in the same patients on three consecutive occasions: preentry without any treatment; after 4 weeks of administration of 20 mg of omeprazole daily, and 4-6 months after proximal gastric vagotomy. Intragastric acidity was slightly more reduced by omeprazole (94%) than after proximal gastric vagotomy (78%), with no difference found during the day or night with either. Plasma gastrin levels increased slightly more after proximal gastric vagotomy [284% (median, 2120 pmol.h/L; range, 733-2831 pmol.h/L)] than after omeprazole administration [186% (median, 1586 pmol.h/L; range, 495-2573 pmol.h/L)]. There is strong evidence that the increased plasma gastrin concentration following omeprazole treatment is caused by the reduced intragastric acidity. The slight increase in plasma gastrin concentration following proximal gastric vagotomy despite a lesser reduction in intragastric acidity may be the result of additional effects on gastrin release by the vagotomy. Both treatments resulted in a modest increase in plasma levels of gastrin that were far below the gastrin levels observed in achlorhydric patients, e.g., patients with pernicious anemia.

Primary Roux-Y gastrojejunostomy versus gastroduodenostomy after antrectomy and selective vagotomy

One hundred twenty-one patients with prepyloric ulcer disease entered a randomized clinical trial comparing gastroduodenostomy with Roux-Y gastrojejunostomy after antrectomy and selective gastric vagotomy. The postoperative course and morbidity were quite similar in the two study groups, as was the postoperative infectious complication rate. Forty-four of the patients with a Billroth I reconstruction and 52 of those with a Roux-Y reconstruction were followed up with a clinical assessment at least 6 months after the operation. The postgastrectomy symptoms were quite frequent, but did not differ between the two study groups. Seventy-five percent of the patients with a Billroth I gastroduodenostomy had symptoms corresponding to Visick grades 1 and 2, compared with 81% of those with Roux-Y reconstruction. Although the latter procedure was very effective in preventing bile reflux to the gastric remnant, no difference was observed in the gastric emptying rate after the two operations.

Use of endoscopic Congo red test in the evaluation of ulcer recurrence risks after proximal gastric vagotomy. A new interpretive method

The endoscopic Congo red test (ECRT) was performed in 43 patients who underwent proximal gastric vagotomy (PGV) for duodenal ulcer (DU). The aim of the study was to develop a standard and reliable way to interpret the results obtained in this test. Thus, the results of ECRT were related to post-operative clinical evaluation and to pre- and post-operative basal and pentagastrin-stimulated gastric acidity. Whenever ECRT was considered positive, we called it in "large extension" if a red-to-black colour change occurred in three or more of the areas studied. Positive ECRT was observed in 39 patients (90.7%). There was a statistically significant (P less than 0.01) correlation between poor clinical results and positive ECRT in "large extension". We concluded that: (1) a positive ECRT result has no clinical or prognostic significance in DU patients after PGV; (2) ECRT, analysed according to the extension of the areas turning black, is a practical and reliable method to establish clinical results and prognosis in these patients.

Anterior lesser curvature laser seromyotomy with posterior truncal vagotomy: a potential treatment of peptic ulcer disease

Anterior lesser curvature seromyotomy combined with posterior truncal vagotomy has been suggested as an alternative to proximal gastric vagotomy in the treatment of peptic ulcer. The argon laser may be an ideal instrument for performing seromyotomy. This study compares anterior lesser curvature argon laser seromyotomy/posterior or truncal vagotomy with anterior proximal gastric vagotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy in a canine preparation. Six dogs underwent anterior lesser curvature argon laser seromyotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy and six others underwent anterior proximal gastric vagotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy. Gastric emptying and acid secretion studies were performed preoperatively and at 1 and 6 months postoperatively. Operating time and blood loss were determined. Anterior lesser curvature argon laser seromyotomy was performed with the argon laser at 10 W, continuous, delivered through a 600 micron unsheathed quartz fibre. Anterior proximal gastric vagotomy and posterior truncal vagotomy were performed in the standard fashion. Solid phase gastric emptying was slowed with both operations (P less than 0.05) but this was not manifest clinically. Blood loss (millilitres) was less following anterior lesser curvature argon laser seromyotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy than following anterior proximal gastric vagotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy (21(6.8) versus 95(28.1), mean (s.e.m.), P less than 0.05) but operating time was not significantly different between the groups. Mean basal acid secretion was reduced by 64 per cent 6 months after anterior lesser, curvature argon laser seromyotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy (P less than 0.05) and by 53 per cent after anterior proximal gastric vagotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy (not significant). Mean stimulated acid secretion was reduced by 41 per cent 6 months after anterior lesser curvature argon laser seromyotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy (P less than 0.05) and by 24 per cent after anterior proximal gastric vagotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy (not significant). We conclude that anterior lesser curvature argon laser seromyotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy is an acceptable alternative to anterior proximal gastric vagotomy/posterior truncal vagotomy and may provide superior parietal cell denervation with less operative blood loss.

Indications for parietal cell vagotomy without drainage in gastrointestinal surgery

Parietal cell vagotomy (PCV) was used for a variety of gastrointestinal conditions in 658 patients. Operative and late related deaths after PCV were 1.1% (3/273) in patients with intractable duodenal ulcers, 1.1% (1/91) in perforated ulcers, 0% (0/43) in Type I gastric ulcers, 0% (0/45) in pyloric and prepyloric ulcers, 3.2% (6/188) when combined with fundoplication, 8.7% (2/23) when combined with vascular surgery, and 4.2% (1/24) in ulcer patients with acute bleeding. The recurrent ulcer rate after PCV was 8.4% in patients operated on for duodenal ulcer, 6.4% for perforated ulcer, 5.3% for bleeding ulcers, 10% for Type I gastric ulcers, and 31% for pyloric and prepyloric ulcers. PCV was preferred to total gastrectomy in four patients in whom a gastrinoma could not be located. PCV was used in 188 patients with reflux esophagitis and in 12 patients with achalasia to facilitate fundoplication and placement of the myotomy, respectively. Based on the results of the study, PCV is contraindicated in patients with pyloric and prepyloric ulcers. PCV is not recommended when traumatic dilatation of the pylorus is required to overcome obstruction. PCV may have limited application in patients with bleeding ulcers and Type I gastric ulcers. In our experience PCV is not contraindicated in patients with ulcers resistant to H2 receptor antagonists. PCV may be contraindicated when acid hypersecretion exceeds an as-yet undetermined level. PCV is an ideal procedure for intractable duodenal ulcers and perforated ulcers.

Current status of proximal gastric vagotomy

Proximal gastric vagotomy is nearing its twentieth year in clinical use as an operation for peptic ulcer disease. No other acid-reducing operation has undergone as much scrutiny or study. At this time, the evidence of such studies and long-term follow-up strongly supports the use of proximal gastric vagotomy as the treatment of choice for chronic duodenal ulcer in patients who have failed medical therapy. Its application in treating the complications of peptic ulcer disease, which recently have come to represent an increasingly greater percentage of all operations done for peptic ulcer disease, is well-tested. However, initial series suggest that it should probably occupy a prominent role in treating some of these complications, particularly in selected patients, in the future. The operation has the well-documented ability to reduce gastric acid production, not inhibit gastric bicarbonate production, and also minimally inhibit gastric motility. The combination of these physiologic results after proximal gastric vagotomy, along with preservation of the normal antropyloroduodenal mechanism of gastrointestinal control, serve to allow patients with proximal gastric vagotomy the improved benefits of significantly fewer severe gastrointestinal side effects than are seen after other operations for peptic ulcer disease.

Parietal cell vagotomy and truncal vagotomy in elective duodenal ulcer surgery--results after six to twelve years

In a randomized trial between 1974 and 1980, parietal cell vagotomy (PCV) was compared with truncal vagotomy (TV) in the treatment of duodenal ulcer in 106 patients. After a mean period of 3.9 years no significant differences were found between PCV and TV patients with respect to Visick grading and recurrence rates. Nor did the preoperative location of the ulcer-prepyloric or duodenal-significantly influence the recurrences. The latter follow-up reported in 1981, showed that PCV was not superior to TV. The present paper describes a re-analysis of the same material in 1985. After a mean observation time of 8.7 years no significant differences in the ulcer recurrence rate were found between PCV and TV. Equal patient satisfaction with the two procedures was found. In patients with prepyloric ulcers, preoperatively, there was a higher recurrence rate among those who had undergone PCV than TV.

Are endoscopic and/or histologic findings in gastroduodenal mucosa a predictor of clinical outcome in peptic ulcer disease? A 1-year follow-up study after initial healing with either cimetidine or medium-dose antacid

Patients with duodenal ulcer (DU; n = 79) or prepyloric ulcer (PPU; n = 39) received cimetidine, 400 mg twice daily, or Novaluzid, 10 ml four times daily (acid-neutralizing capacity, 340 mmol/day), in a multicentre, randomized, double-blind trial. Ulcer healing was almost identical with the two treatments at 4, 6, and 12 weeks in the DU group. Cimetidine was significantly more effective than antacids in alleviating symptoms in PPU disease, with no significant difference in ulcer healing. In the PPU group the symptomatic improvement was inferior irrespective of treatment, and there was a significantly lower healing rate at 4 weeks (p less than 0.05) than in the DU group. The relapse rate over a 1-year follow-up period with no therapy did not differ between the two treatment groups or between the two ulcer groups. No factors in history of disease or endoscopic or histologic variables were of predictive value with regard to delayed healing. The macroscopic appearance of the duodenal and antral mucosae improved significantly when ulcers had healed. In the subgroup of about 50% DU patients who experienced a relapse during the 1-year follow-up period, the histologic scoring of duodenitis remained basically unchanged, contrary to the significant improvement seen in the non-relapsing subgroup. The microscopic changes of the antral mucosa from the time of inclusion to healing seen in the PPU patients were of no predictive value with regard to relapse rate.

Diagnostic evaluation: gastric acid secretion and pH

The diagnostic value of gastric secretion tests has been found to be lower than what was previously believed. Thus basal and stimulated acid output is normal in most ulcer patients, and this is also so for gastric and duodenal pH. Gastric acid secretion does not separate patients with rapid recurrence after medical treatment from those with a long period of remission, and acid secretion is usually not higher in patients with recurrence after vagotomy than in patients without relapse. Today a gastric acid secretion test is used in patients suspected of the Zollinger-Ellison syndrome and it seems also to be valuable in ulcer patients who do not respond clinically satisfactory to medical treatment.

Incomplete distal denervation and recurrent ulcer after parietal cell vagotomy

Twenty-five patients with chronic duodenal ulcer and subjected to parietal cell vagotomy were evaluated as either underdenervated or optimally denervated, depending on whether parietal cells were present distal to the last branch of Latarjet's nerve. A 5-year follow-up study demonstrated recurrent ulcer in three of five judged as underdenervated. In addition to the possible technical error of distal and proximal dissection, the importance of the inborn error of incomplete distal denervation is confirmed.

Effects of partial truncal vagotomy on intragastric pressure responses to vagal stimulation and gastric distension in ferrets

Changes in intragastric pressure after dorsal truncal vagotomy, investigated by stimulation of the surviving vagal branches and by step inflation of the stomach, were divided into an early phase lasting five days, and a late phase continuing for at least three months. During the early phase the amplitude of vagal evoked contraction was diminished but the resting pressure and the response to gastric inflation were increased. After the fifth day vagal evoked contractions doubled in amplitude but the resting pressure and the response to step inflation of the stomach returned to control levels. Ventral vagotomy did not produce any substantial changes. Alterations to gastric and body weight, or to the relation between resting pressure and evoked contraction and relaxation were excluded as causes of the enhanced vagal effectiveness. Sprouting of axons into denervated territory occurred too late to explain the changes, but an increase in synaptic density within the innervated territory has not been ruled out.

Prospective 14- to 18-year follow-up study after parietal cell vagotomy

One hundred and thirty-five patients underwent elective parietal cell vagotomy for duodenal, pyloric or prepyloric ulcers. The patients were followed prospectively at intervals of 1-3 years in order to detect postvagotomy symptoms and recurrent ulcers; 14-18 years after surgery 106 patients were studied with regard to recurrent ulceration and 84 concerning postvagotomy symptoms. Thirty-two patients (30 per cent) had developed proven recurrent ulcers and a further 9 per cent were suspected of having recurrences. Two patients were reoperated for gastric outlet obstruction and one for bile reflux gastritis. Four patients had severe dyspeptic symptoms and four severe dyspepsia plus dumping. No patient had severe diarrhoea. Forty-three patients were regarded as failures after parietal cell vagotomy. After treatment of these failures 88 per cent of the patients available for subsequent follow-up had satisfactory results. The alternatives to parietal cell vagotomy are discussed. It is concluded that although parietal cell vagotomy has a high long-term recurrence rate, this disadvantage is outweighed by the low incidence severe postvagotomy symptoms.

Perforated duodenal ulcer managed by simple closure versus closure and proximal gastric vagotomy

A prospective randomized trial of simple closure versus closure and proximal gastric vagotomy was conducted in 50 consecutive patients with perforated duodenal ulcer. There was one postoperative death in each group and no difference in postoperative morbidity. After a median follow-up of 54 months (24-96) the cumulative recurrence rate after simple suture was 52 per cent against 16 per cent after proximal gastric vagotomy and closure (P less than 0.01). The recurrence rate after proximal gastric vagotomy for perforated duodenal ulcer was comparable to the recurrence rate seen after the electively performed operation.

The antral gastrin-producing cells in duodenal ulcer patients. A study of preoperative G-cell densities, fasting serum-gastrin, pre- and postoperative gastric acid secretion and outcome after parietal cell vagotomy

Antral gastrin-producing cell densities, as well as serum gastrin and gastric acid secretion were obtained prior to parietal cell vagotomy from 60 patients suffering from chronic duodenal ulcer disease. Acid secretion was also measured postoperatively. The patients were followed for five years. The ulcer recurrence rate was 20%. No differences were found in the G-cell densities, fasting serum-gastrin or gastric acid secretion preoperatively between the two groups: recurrence and non-recurrence. The acid secretion was higher postoperatively in patients with recurrent ulcer as compared to those without recurrence of the ulcer, suggesting that incomplete vagotomy is a reasonable explanation of the recurrence, even though post-operative G-cell abnormality cannot definitely be ruled out.

One hundred patients ten years after parietal cell vagotomy

One hundred patients with duodenal or pyloric/prepyloric ulcer disease were operated with parietal cell vagotomy (PCV) and followed for a minimum of 10 years. At 6 weeks, 1,5 and 10 years postoperatively gastric secretory tests, haematological work-up and clinical examination or telephone interview were performed. There was no operative mortality and the frequency of postoperative sequelae was minimal. The cumulative ulcer recurrence rate was 18 per cent and another 14 per cent had slight to moderate symptoms of epigastric pain without any signs of ulcer. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy was used to reveal recurrences but was performed only if the patient had symptoms of recurrence. A rise in basal acid secretion and in pentagastrin-stimulated secretion was observed the first year postoperatively, whereas insulin-stimulated peak acid output increased during the first 5 years. We conclude that PCV has a low rate of per- and postoperative complications and an acceptable recurrence rate. Therefore, it seems that PCV is the method of choice in chronic duodenal ulcer disease.

Clinical results of reoperation after failed highly selective vagotomy

The results after reoperation after failed highly selective vagotomy during a 10 year period have been reviewed retrospectively. Forty of 306 patients (13 percent) underwent reoperation due to recurrent ulcer (25 patients), severe dyspepsia without proved recurrence (12 patients), and gastric stasis without recurrence (3 patients). In the first two groups, 16 patients had a second vagotomy and 17 underwent partial gastrectomy, 10 with gastroduodenostomy and 7 with gastrojejunostomy. The need for a second reoperation was disquietingly high after both revagotomy (5 of 16 patients) and partial gastrectomy with gastroduodenostomy (4 of 10 patients). These results contrasted with a successful outcome in all seven patients who underwent reoperation with partial gastrectomy and gastrojejunostomy. At the time of follow-up, 85 percent of the reoperated patients (34 of 40 patients) were in Visick grade 1 or 2 as determined by their own judgement.

Proximal gastric vagotomy. Follow-up of 109 patients for 6-13 years

From January 1973 through December 1979, 131 patients underwent proximal gastric vagotomy (PGV) for duodenal ulcer. There were 78 men and 53 women, whose age ranged from 19 to 73 years, with a mean age of 45 years. One hospital death occurred as a result of pulmonary embolism (0.7% mortality). There were 12 late deaths unrelated to ulcer disease, and each of the 12 patients was graded Visick I or II prior to death. Nine patients were lost to follow-up. This report is an analysis of the remaining 109 patients followed from 6 to 13 years. One hundred two patients (93.5%) underwent PGV for intractability. Seven patients (6.5%) who underwent PGV in selective circumstances for either acute perforation (3 patients), bleeding (1 patient), and moderate outlet obstruction (3 patients) are included. Follow-up results reveal that 52 patients (47%) are graded Visick I, 40 patients (36%) Visick II, five patients (5%) Visick III, and 12 patients (12%) Visick IV. Mild diarrhea occurred in 2.8% and mild dumping in 1.9%, and no reflux gastritis or esophagitis was noted. Recurrent ulceration took place in 10 patients, and seven subsequently required reoperation. Two additional patients had the antral pump mechanism denervated and later required antrectomy. PGV has yielded satisfactory results over a 6-13 year follow-up when operation was done for intractability. The low incidence of unpleasant long-term side effects is an appealing feature of the operation. A recurrent ulcer rate of 9.2% (10 patients) has, however, been of major concern. Those with a prime interest in gastric surgery are urged to continue the use of PGV in cases of intractability. Another 10 years of clinical investigative work will no doubt be necessary to determine the ultimate rate of recurrent ulceration.

Symptomatic recurrence of healed duodenal and prepyloric ulcers after treatment with ranitidine or high-dose antacid. A 1-year follow-up study

Eighty-seven patients with duodenal (n = 49) or prepyloric (n = 38) ulcers healed with ranitidine (n = 44) or a high-dose liquid antacid (n = 43) completed a 1-year double-blind comparative study of symptomatic relapse without treatment. Both duodenal ulcers and prepyloric ulcers tended to remain true to their type of recurrence. Age, sex, history of ulcer disease, duration of initial treatment, and smoking habits were all without influence on the relapse rates. The subgroup of patients with a duodenal ulcer who had healed on either treatment regimen had a symptomatic relapse significantly more frequently than those with prepyloric ulcer (64% +/- 13 versus 34% +/- 15; p less than 0.025), but the estimated probabilities of relapse were unaffected (p greater than 0.05) by the initial type of medication (ranitidine group, 56% +/- 15; antacid group, 51% +/- 15). Thus the present study could not confirm the hypothesis that patients treated with H2-receptor antagonists tend to relapse earlier than those treated with antacids during the following year without treatment.

Clinical results 1-10 years after highly selective vagotomy in 306 patients with prepyloric and duodenal ulcer disease

Overall clinical results were assessed 1-10 years after routinely performed highly selective vagotomy (HSV) in 326 consecutive patients suffering duodenal and prepyloric ulcer disease, operated on by 37 surgeons of varying seniority at a district general hospital. Three hundred and six (94 per cent) patients were followed up. No mortality was recorded after 326 primary and 50 reoperative procedures. Postoperative complications were few and diminished during the study period. Persistent moderate to severe dumping was found in 2.3 per cent of the patients; slight and periodic, but in no case disabling, diarrhoea in 11 per cent and gastric retention in 2.1 per cent. The overall clinical ulcer recurrence rate was 13.8 per cent, with a tendency towards better results during the second 5 year period. Significant differences were found between individual surgeons and groups of surgeons. Recurrences tended to be located more proximally than the primary ulcer. Fifty reoperations were performed in forty patients for ulcer recurrence (twenty-five), persistent ulcer-like symptoms (twelve) and gastric retention (three). When all recurrences and reoperations were classified as failures the symptomatic assessment according to Visick showed 67 per cent of the patients in grades I-II and 26 per cent in grade IV but the corresponding figures from the patients' own classification including the results of reoperations were 79 per cent and 7 per cent. It is concluded that for the time being HSV is the method of choice for the elective surgical treatment of duodenal and prepyloric ulcer disease.

24-H study of gastric acidity and bile acid concentration after parietal cell vagotomy

Intragastric pH and bile acid concentration (BAC) were measured over 24 h in 15 sham-feeding-negative patients, 7 with and 8 without recurrence after parietal cell vagotomy (PCV). Nocturnal acidity was significantly higher (p less than 0.02), and BAC at night significantly lower (p less than 0.02), in the group with recurrent ulcers after PCV. There were no significant differences postoperatively in acidity or BAC between seven patients who had duodenal ulcers preoperatively and eight patients with prepyloric ulcers. High nocturnal acidity may be a predisposing factor for the recurrence of ulcers after PCV.

Results of long-term treatment with cimetidine

Forty-two patients, 35 with duodenal ulcer, 6 with prepyloric ulcer, and 1 with gastric ulcer, were, in accordance with their own choice, allocated to either maintenance therapy with cimetidine or intermittent therapy in connection with symptoms and endoscopically proven relapse. Dosage during maintenance therapy was kept as low as possible to keep patients free of symptoms. Patients receiving maintenance therapy were mostly free of symptoms, but 6 out of 24 patients had from one recurrence every 2nd year to 3 recurrences per year. Patients receiving intermittent therapy had two recurrences per year (median). The yearly dose of cimetidine in maintenance therapy was high (219 g; range, 73-292 g) compared with 59 g (range, 42-84 g) in intermittent therapy. To conclude, we cannot recommend the use of maintenance therapy for years in the routine management of ulcer patients.

[Recurrence following ulcer operation: aggressive ulcer disease or inadequate therapy?]

Re-ulceration after surgery occurs in 2.2% following resecting procedures, in 12% following vagotomy. 10 to 30% of the re-ulcerations are unresponsive to H2-blocking agents. 70% of all patients develop re-ulceration as medical prophylaxis after re-ulceration is discontinued. The most common reasons for re-ulceration after surgery are incomplete vagotomy after inadequate organ preserving operations and too great remnant after resecting techniques.

Ulcer healing and relapse prevention by ranitidine in peptic ulcer disease

Ranitidine, 300 mg daily, was given to 92 patients with duodenal ulcer (DU), 38 with prepyloric ulcer (PPU), and 21 with gastric corporeal ulcer (GCU). The healing rates at 4 weeks differed for the different types of ulcers (P less than 0.01), being 91% for DU, 68% for PPU, and 81% for GCU. After established ulcer healing, maintenance treatment with either ranitidine, 100 mg twice daily or 150 mg at night, or placebo was given for 1 year or until ulcer relapse in a total of 108 patients--71 with DU, 24 with PPU, and 13 with GCU. There were no significant differences in relapse rates between the two groups treated with active drug or between the three ulcer groups. However, the overall relapse rate in the active drug groups was 16%, against 72% in the placebo group (P less than 0.001).

Parietal cell vagotomy or cimetidine maintenance therapy for duodenal ulcer? A prospective controlled trial

In a prospective controlled trial 86 duodenal ulcer patients with symptoms severe enough to indicate surgery were randomized to a full-dose cimetidine course followed by maintenance therapy for 1 year or parietal cell vagotomy (PCV). The average follow-up period was 57 months. In the group assigned to medical therapy 62% of the patients were free of symptoms during maintenance therapy, and 12% remained well during the follow-up period. Operation was later performed in 35%, whereas 53% had symptomatic recurrence demanding medical treatment regularly. After PCV no patient died, and there were no serious sequelae. The overall recurrence rate was 17%; after treatment of failures 9% continued to have dyspepsia. Since nearly 3/4 of the patients were free of symptoms after PCV, operation seems to be the method of choice in patients with a severe history and fast recurrence after medical therapy. However, the aged and those at high risk of surgery may benefit from cimetidine maintenance therapy.

High gastric bile acid concentration in prepyloric ulcer patients

The intragastric concentrations of bile acid (BAC) and pH were measured over 24 h in 13 patients with duodenal (DU), in 11 with prepyloric (PU) ulcer disease, and in 12 healthy controls. Large fluctuations in bile acid concentration occurred for individuals from all three groups. PU patients had BACs higher than DU patients and controls both during the day (p less than 0.01 and p less than 0.001) and at night (p less than 0.001 and p less than 0.05). Controls had a significantly higher BAC during the night than the day (p less than 0.001). The acidity was significantly higher in DU patients than in controls both during the day and night (p less than 0.05). Compared with PU patients, the DU patients had higher acidity at night (p less than 0.01).

Vagotomy or gastrectomy for elective treatment of benign gastric ulceration?

The results of elective gastrectomy and vagotomy with drainage for benign gastric ulcer are described in terms of operative mortality, recurrent ulceration, overall clinical results, and risk of malignancy. Although it has a slightly lower operative morbidity and mortality, the results of vagotomy with drainage are not sufficiently superior to abandon gastrectomy. Highly selective vagotomy, without drainage, provides good overall clinical results but has a high associated incidence of recurrent ulceration. Neither gastrectomy nor vagotomy with drainage have a distinct advantage in patients with combined gastroduodenal or prepyloric ulceration.

Prospective, randomized trial of selective vagotomy with pyloroplasty and selective proximal vagotomy with and without pyloroplasty in the treatment of duodenal, pyloric, and prepyloric ulcers

In a prospective, randomized trial, 161 patients with duodenal, pyloric, or prepyloric ulcer underwent selective proximal vagotomy. Randomization was then performed to determine if the operation was finished (52 patients), if a pyloroplasty should be added (56 patients), or in addition, if the nerves of Latarjet should be divided (53 patients). Prepyloric and secondary gastric ulcers were excised for microscopy; all were benign. Sex, age, site of ulcer, and duration and incidence of complications of the ulcer disease were similar for the three groups. There was one operative death. The postoperative complications did not differ for the three groups. Four patients were lost to follow-up. The average follow-up for the 156 patients was 3 years (range 1 to 8 years). Recurrent ulcer was detected up to 5 years after surgery in 4 of 53 patients who had selective vagotomy with pyloroplasty, in 4 of 53 who had selective proximal vagotomy with pyloroplasty, and in 5 of 50 who had selective proximal vagotomy. Diarrhea was rare and mild or absent. Dumping was twice as common after selective vagotomy or selective proximal vagotomy with pyloroplasty than after selective proximal vagotomy only, but dumping resistant to treatment was recorded in only two or three patients in each group. The overall results (modified Visick scale) were unsatisfactory in 7 patients after selective vagotomy with pyloroplasty, in 4 after selective proximal vagotomy with pyloroplasty, and in 10 after selective proximal vagotomy, mainly because of epigastric pain with or without recurrent ulcer. We conclude that pyloroplasty may cause mild dumping without nuisance to the patient. The rates of recurrent ulcer in long-term follow-up trials are essential for final evaluation of the operations.