During the past 15 years subtotal gastrectomy has become accepted as the standard operation for the definitive treatment of chronic duodenal ulcers that require surgical intervention, and it has become the yardstick by which all other procedures are judged. During the past 10 years vagotomy with or without gastroenterostomy has been added as an alternative method of correcting the complications encountered in patients with duodenal ulcer. Surgeons are generally agreed that definitive operations are indicated in only about 15 to 20% of all duodenal ulcers, and surgical therapy is employed chiefly in the management of the complications of long-standing ulcer disease, i. e., obstruction, perforation, hemorrhage, and intractability.RESULTS AFTER VAGOTOMYIn any disease with spontaneous exacerbations and remissions it is imperative that conclusions be drawn only after long-term follow-up. Although it is now well established that 60 to 70% of recurrences following gastroenterostomy will have manifested themselves within two