[Influence of pregnancy on the healing of chronic gastric and duodenal ulcers. Role of endogenous epidermal growth factor].

The authors examined the influence of pregnancy on the healing of chronic gastric and duodenal ulcers in connection with pregnancy-induced changes of growth parameters of gastric-duodenal mucosa and changes in the level of endogenic EGF. Besides, the level of EGF was lowered by the resection of submandibular glands (sialadenectomy). Pregnancy caused an increase in the speed of the healing of gastric and duodenal ulcers, this effect being the result of the appearance of hyperplastic changes in the gastric-duodenal mucosa. This hyperplasia was the result of the increase in the level of endogenic EGF. Sialadenectomy decreased the level of EGF in the blood serum preventing total pregnancy hyperplasia of the mucosa in the stomach and partly in the duodenum, which resulted in the total abolition of favourable influence of pregnancy on the healing of gastric ulcers and reduction of the influence of pregnancy on the healing of duodenal ulcers. The results obtained show that the gastric and duodenal mucosa during pregnancy has an increased ability to regenerate, this ability resulting from the hyperplasia of the mucosa taking place in pregnancy, which is the effect of an increase in the level of endogenic EGF.