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Physiologic, psychologic, and social determinants in the etiology of duodenal ulcer

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Conclusions

With the preceding, an attempt has been made to delineate only a few of the links in the chain of events that comprise the physiologic, psychologic, and social determinants in the predisposition to and precipitation of duodenal ulcer in man. Such a survey makes obvious that there is no single causal agent in the etiology of this syndrome and that the discrepancies that exist between various hypotheses are related to each proponent's particular orientation. Those who insist that the development of duodenal ulcer is determined solely by “organic” factors are as fallacious as those who claim that “psychic” factors are the sole determinants. Such polar attitudes will disappear when the inferences are derived from “propter hoc” rather than from “post hoc” data. The selection of individuals who are most likely to develop the syndrome in the future and the proper application of the concepts and tools of various disciplines during the premorbid state will yield such information about the precise determinants in the predisposition and precipitation of duodenal ulcer as to make it unnecessary to camouflage ignorance by dogma. The studies reported herein represent an effort in that direction.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. From the Department of Clinical Science, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pa.

    I. Arthur Mirsky M.D.

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Aided by a grant (M-486) from the U.S. Public Health Service and the Foundations Fund for Research in Psychiatry.

The technical assistance of Louisa Linn and the collaboration of Drs. Marvin Stein, Gerhard Paulisch, and Daniel Diengott in various aspects of these studies are gratefully acknowledged.

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Mirsky, I.A. Physiologic, psychologic, and social determinants in the etiology of duodenal ulcer. Digest Dis Sci 3, 285–314 (1958). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02232411

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