[Motility and peptic ulcer--possible pathogenetic relations].

The most important causes of peptic ulcers are increased gastric acid secretion, impaired mucosal circulation and damages to the mucosa. In contrast, motility plays only a minor role. The following motility disturbances are discussed in peptic ulcers: 1. Impaired gastric emptying may favor the development of gastric ulceration, if it is grossly delayed, and that of duodenal ulceration, if it is inappropriately accelerated. 2. Disturbances of duodenal motility in the fasted state may disturb bicarbonate secretion and, thus, become theoretically ulcerogenic. 3. Duodenogastric reflux has been discussed as a cause of gastric ulceration for a long time; yet, the proof is still missing. 4. According to own studies gastric ulcer is frequently accompanied by morphological and functional changes in the antrum; the cause-effect relationship, however, has yet to be elucidated.