Neurological Complications in an Unselected Group of Patients Partially Gastrectomized for Gastric Ulcer

A clinical neurological follow-up study is submitted, including 128 patients with a history of surgery for benign gastric ulcer an average of 12 years previously. Among these 128 patients, 44 had signs of myelopathy, peripheral neuropathy or severe intellectual impairment, presumably due to vitamin B12 deficiency. Four of these patients were on vitamin B12 therapy. In the remaining 40 the serum vitamin B12 averaged 154 pg/ml. Out of the 44 affected patients 14 were in the serum B12 range 150–200 pg/ml. B12 therapy is recommended also for this group of “questionable reduction” to avoid irreversible cerebral and spinal lesions due to the B12 deficiency.