There is no excuse for a new operation if the old ones are satisfactory. The results of a surgical operation are the test of its efficiency, and they should be viewed from two standpoints: First, and most important, is the clinical result and, secondly, the restoration of tissues or organs to their normal physiologic condition. It seems probable that no important physiologic function of the body can be abolished or seriously altered without creating a disturbance of health in at least some of the individuals thus affected.
The usual surgical treatment for duodenal or gastric ulcers is gastro-enterostomy, with or without excision of the ulcer. When done for gastric ulcer, the ulcer is either excised or cauterized with the actual cautery (Balfour). When the gastro-enterostomy is for a duodenal ulcer, the ulcer is usually not excised, but is often sutured over or folded in. Another type of operation employed is