title: Assessment of gastric mucosal ulceration by computerized image processing.
abstract: The absence of a rapid, objective, and reproducible method for assessing mucosal ulceration has long been a frustration to research in the field of gastric physiology. This study compared assessment of mucosal injury by computerized image processing with values obtained by the shed microsphere technique. An ex vivo gastric chamber model based on miniature swine was used. Five chambers were subjected to hemorrhagic shock and acid-bile solution and five chambers were maintained in normotension and exposed to normal saline (controls). After 3 hr, mucosal injury was assessed by both techniques. The chambers exposed to shock and acid-bile all developed visible ulceration ranging from 1.8 to 99.7 cm2 by computerized image processing. These values correlated well with the results obtained by the shed microsphere technique (23 to 419 mg, r = 0.99, P less than .05). No ulceration developed in the control chambers. Implementation of computerized image processing as well as its limitations is discussed.
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000473:pathology*; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008863:Microspheres; D013276:Stomach Ulcer / Q000473:pathology*; D013552:Swine; D013556:Swine, Miniature