Blood flow distribution in the stomach of cats with acute gastric ulcer.

An ulcer was induced in the anterior wall of the antrum of cats by local injection of acetic acid solution. Carbonized microspheres, 15 +/- 5 microns in diameter, labelled with 141Ce, were used to measure blood flow in different regions and layers of the stomach wall. The radioactivity of a blod reference sample and of tissue samples was determined, and the blood flow was calculated for each tissue sample. The gastric tissue samples were examined microscopically, and the level of gastrin in serum was determined. Two groups of anaesthetized animals were used: in one group of animals blood flow was determined 24 h after ulcer induction and in a group of control animals 24 h after laparotomy. In the ulcer animals the gastric blood flow as increased both in the mucosa and in the muscularis in a zone around the ulcer. Microscopic examination revealed tissue necrosis corresponding to the floor of the ulcer and acute inflammatory changes in the gastric wall around the necrotic area. The serum gastrin concentration tended to increase after ulcer induction.