Duodeno-gastric reflux in normal and dyspeptic subjects.

A simple radiological technique is described for detecting the presence, or absence, of duodeno-gastric reflux (DGR) at barium meal examination. The incidence of DGR was found to be approximately the same in both normal volunteers and dyspeptic patients. Although there was a slight trend towards an increased incidence in gastric ulcer, this did not reach statistical significance. The severity of reflux did not correlate with the presence of peptic ulceration. DGR appears to be more common with increasing age. Our results cast doubt on the hypothesis that reflux of duodenal content plays a primary role in the pathogenesis of gastric ulcer.