Gastric Acidity in Normal Individuals.

A review of the literature reveals comparatively little information concerning gastric acidity in normal individuals. The available data are based mostly on test meals of the Ewald type. In addition to the technical difficulties in analysis inherent in these methods, they fail to give a maximum stimulation for secretion of gastric juice, as do histamine or histamine plus alcohol. Consequently the average acidities of the available standards are low and the incidence of achlorhydria high. As demonstrated by Gompertz and Vorhaus (1) and Bockus and Bank (2) histamine used in conjunction with the test meal enables one to differentiate true from false achlorhydria. Thus Davies and James (3), studying normal persons over the age of 60, and Vanzant (4) investigating a large series of normals of all ages, have made use of this means of differentiating true from false achlorhydria. Except for the recently published data of Polland and Bloomfield (5), we have been unable to find any normal gastric acidity standards based on histamine as the gastric secretory stimulant. An objection to their results may be raised, namely, they do not contain figures for the incidence of achlorhydria. Because of the lack of suitable data concerning the gastric acidity of the normal individual it was deemed advisable to collect our own from the hospital records before proceeding with our study of the gastric secretion in various pathological conditions. We are placing these on record, with the hope that they may be of value to those who use the technique of gastric analysis similar to ours.