Duodenogastric reflux (DGR) was quantified in 40 patients, 10 of them being healthy subjects used as a control group. The remaining 30 underwent gastric surgery and fell into two groups according to their medical history: symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. As a DGR study method, 24-hour gastric pH measurement was used, in association with the determination of bile acids in aspirated gastric juice. Bile acid determination was used in order to differentiate the pH increases due to hyposecretion from those due to DGR. Our results show that, in symptomatic patients, the mean size of the reflux areas (pH > 4) and the mean total bile acid concentration are statistically significantly larger than those of asymptomatic patients (p < < 0.01).

Helicobacter pylori infection has been linked with the genesis of acute gastritis, chronic gastritis and/or gastroduodenal peptic ulcer in patients without previous gastric surgery. In this paper we analyse the relation between Helicobacter pylori infection and the symptoms, endoscopic alterations, surgical technique, histological lesions of the gastric mucosa and duodenogastric reflux in patients undergoing gastric surgery. The study was made on 63 patients (30 with vagotomy and pyloroplasty, 18 with Billroth II gastrectomy and 15 with Billroth I gastrectomy). Helicobacter pylori infection was not related to any of the parameters analysed: surgical technique, clinical data, endoscopic alterations, histological lesions and duodenogastric reflux.