pyloric obstruction

Pyloric obstruction is the most common complication of peptic ulcer disease, most frequently seen in duodenal ulcers and occasionally in pyloric canal or prepyloric ulcers. Pyloric obstruction results from scar contracture after healing of gastroduodenal ulcers near the pylorus. The prominent clinical symptom is severe vomiting of food retained from previous meals, without bile, which can lead to severe malnutrition and fluid-electrolyte imbalance. The incidence of pyloric obstruction is approximately 10%. It is most common in patients with duodenal ulcers. Early stages are mainly dominated by pyloric spasm and inflammation, which can be relieved by medical treatment, but later stages present as permanent stenosis requiring surgical intervention.