Peptic Ulcer in Central Scotland

This article concerns the social class incidence, duration of symptoms, age at onset of symptoms and the blood groups of patients who were found during 1962 at Stirling Royal Infirmary to have peptic ulcer. The ulcer was either proven radiologically or was found at laparotomy which was being carried out for perforation, severe haematemesis or some other reason.

A low incidence in males of both gastric and duodenal ulcers was found in Social Class 3 and an increase in incidence in Social Class 4. Gastric ulcer in males tends to occur later in life than duodenal ulcer and in females there is a striking increase in duodenal ulcer in the 40 to 49 decade of life. The hypothesis is advanced that this may be due to hormonal changes. A second hypothesis is advanced that ‘secretors’ of blood group genotype AA, BB, or AB are immune to duodenal ulcer.