Journal of the American Medical Association · 1954 · 31 citations · 4 references
MedicineSurgeryGastrointestinal PharmacotherapyHemostasisPathophysiologyAcid-base DisordersAcid-base ManagementAcute Gastrointestinal HemorrhagePeptic Ulcer DiseaseUlcer ManagementHydrochloric Acid TreatmentPeptic Ulcer Disease EradicationPeptic Ulcer Disease PathophysiologyPeptic Ulcer PathophysiologyTherapeutic Futility
After all the years that physicians and surgeons have been contending with the dilemma of peptic ulcer, one would think that by now there would have been some substantial progress made toward its solution. Instead, we have witnessed a dreary pursuance of time-worn theories that base the etiology of ulcer on constitution and temperament, inflammation and infection, neurogenic and psychiatric influences, and, finally, on an excess of hydrochloric acid. Incidentally, the devotion of the acid advocates to their cause must be admired when one contemplates the heartbreaking futility that has been so consistently encountered through the years in an attempt to eradicate ulcer by eradicating acid. All medical and surgical treatment for over a generation has been designed toward this end, despite the fact that no one knows whether acid is the<i>sine qua non</i>it is so popularly supposed to be in the etiology of ulcer. It is clear
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