Abstract

Salivary response to stimulation with citric acid was higher in patients with duodenal ulcer disease than in patients with other diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract. This increase was proportional to an increase of histamine-stimulated gastric acid secretion. In duodenal ulcer disease, the increase in parietal cell mass may therefore be associated with the growth of other exocrine organs such as the salivary glands.