Spontaneous enterogastric reflux gastritis and esophagitis.

Enterogastric reflux gastritis and esophagitis is best known after gastric resections and pyloroplasty but it also occurs spontaneously in the nonoperated patient. Forty-two patients are presented who meet the criteria for the diagnosis: constant burning epigastric pain, worse after meals, unrelieved by antacids and diet; endoscopic demonstration of a gastric bile pool; endoscopic biopsy proof of gastritis and esophagitis; and hypochlorhydria. Patients with mild and moderate stages of the disease can benefit from metoclopramide therapy which improves the gastric emptying mechanism. Of the surgical patients with intractable symptoms, 90% were women, 90% had marked hypochlorhydria, 83% had biliary disease, current or remote, and 50% had anemia. With vagotomy, antrectomy, and Roux-Y anastomosis 45-60 cm downstream, the clinical response has been most encouraging.