The present treatment of duodenal ulceration aims at reducing the parietal cell acid output. Recently it has been shown1 that urea can alter the gastric mucosal barrier and diminish the ability of Heidenhain pouches to contain an acid solution. The question arose as to whether topical urea might also diminish external acid secretion by altering this barrier.
In these experiments the effects of urea on histamine-stimulated gastric acid secretion and on gastric mucosal histology have been studied. Observations were made in dogs following urea washouts, and also following prolonged administration of urea in the diet. In addition, an investigation was undertaken to determine whether the circulatory changes seen in the urea washout experiments were in any way responsible for the changes in external acid secretion.
Materials and Methods
The first two experiments were carried out on four healthy, mongrel dogs (A, B, C, and D), weighing 29 kg (64