Deaths from peptic ulceration.

Deaths due to peptic ulceration can be prevented only by curing the ulcer and preventing the ulcer diathesis permanently by either medical or surgical means. Recurrence of ulcers after drug treatment is a major problem, so continuous treatment is often necessary, but there is no evidence that this decreases mortality. Surgery is the only means of permanently removing the ulcer diathesis in most patients, and subsequent mortality is low. A reasonable balance has to be achieved between the two kinds of treatment to prevent most deaths from peptic ulcer.