Immune complex deposits in the duodenal mucosa of duodenal ulcer patients

A hypothesis was previously proposed for chronic duodenal ulcer to be due to a local Arthus reaction in the duodenal mucosa. The present study searched for immune complex deposits in the duodenal mucosa of 20 patients with endoscopically proven duodenal ulcer. Their ages ranged from 21-48 years. 16 of them were males. Immune complex deposits were found by direct immunofluorescent technique in 6 non smoker patients [39%] with no history of ulcerogenic drug intake. Two of them were females. This observation added to others may suggest an immunologic basis of a subgroup of chronic duodenal ulcer patients