Summary

Highly selective vagotomy (HSV) is the newest of the surgical treatments for peptic ulcer disease. The effectiveness of HSV in comparison with the more traditional operations and the research carried out to demonstrate this are discussed.

The four year period during which HSV became the elective surgical treatment for duodenal ulcer at the Royal Naval Hospital, Haslar, has been analysed and reveals that HSV results in a considerable reduction in the time before a Serviceman is fit to return to full duty in medical category P2.