title: Is gastroduodenitis part of the spectrum of peptic ulcer disease?
abstract: Gastroduodenitis should be included with duodenal ulcer and gastric ulcer in the spectrum of clinical disorders that have different pathogenetic mechanisms but a similar clinical picture. Published results of a clinical, endoscopic, radiologic, and histologic study of 100 patients presenting with gastrointestinal symptoms revealed that 61% had classic and 39% had atypical manifestations of peptic ulcer disease. We could not clinically distinguish the 24 patients with ulcer crater (40% of the classic group) from the 25 patients with acute gastroduodenitis without crater (41% of the classic group). Preliminary data of a prospective study compared the treatment responses of 19 patients with gastroduodenitis and 39 patients with peptic ulcer disease. These patients were diagnosed endoscopically and restudied after treatment with a bland diet and antacids seven times per day for 8 weeks. The responses to therapy in gastroduodenitis and peptic ulcer were as follows: endoscopically, 63 and 80%, respectively; histologically, 74 and 65%, respectively; symptomatically, 47 and 65%, respectively. Preliminary data on the duodenal epithelial thymidine uptake revealed an increased proliferative index in duodenitis patients but not in patients with peptic ulcer or control subjects.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002455:Cell Division; D004382:Duodenitis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D004724:Endoscopy; D004847:Epithelial Cells; D005260:Female; D005756:Gastritis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010437:Peptic Ulcer / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D011446:Prospective Studies