Histamine metabolism and gastric secretion in experimental burns in the rat.

The urinary excretion of histamine and the histamine formation in burned and control male and female rats were measured. With increasing temperature, the histamine excretion increased in male and female rats. The histamine formation was increased in burned skin. The changes are presumably a result of the inflicted injury, which means that in the rat histamine is involved in the inflammatory reaction. A small and probably significant reduction in histamine forming capacity was observed in the stomach from burned and starved female rats. Female rats were provided with a gastric fistula. The secretion of hydrochloric acid and pepsin was measured before and after the rats had been burned. After burns, a small but not significant reduction in gastric secretion was seen. It is proposed that the burn injury in some way or another may inhibit the gastric function for a while.