11:00:00 AM
Regurgitation
of Food
Q. What causes the regurgitation of food?
A. Regurgitation of food is in most cases probably due
to permanent or temporary obstruction of the outlet of the stomach. The pylorus
may be permanently obstructed by cancer or other growth, or it may be
temporarily obstructed by contraction. The last named condition is the most
frequent cause of regurgitation.
When the outlet of the stomach is obstructed by some
organic change, such as ulcer, cancer or compression by bands due to
inflammation, relief may be obtained by operation. Spasm of the pylorus is most
frequently produced by hyperacidity, which may generally be relieved by
regulation of the diet. The foods should be soft, not in a liquid state; that
is, in the form of purees. The food should be swallowed after slight
mastication only, and one or two tablespoonfuls of olive oil should be taken at
each meal. Care should be taken to have the bowels move three or four times a
day.
The bile and pancreatic juice, alkaline fluids,
normally regurgitate into the stomach and neutralize the gastric acid, reducing
the acidity from five parts to three parts of hydrochloric acid in one thousand
parts of gastric juice.