Over a period of 12 years, 1,039 patients were operated on at our hospital for gastroduodenal peptic ulcer. We analyzed the indications for surgery and divided the patients into two groups: subjects operated on for refractory ulcer, and patients operated on for an ulcer complication (bleeding, perforation or stenosis). To analyze the incidence of these indications for surgery, the 12 years of study (1976–1987) were divided into three 4-year periods. Our results show a statistically significant decline (p < 0.001) in the number of refractory ulcers after 1979, mainly concerning surgery for duodenal ulcer (p < 0.001). At the same time we witnessed a statistically significant increase (p < 0.001) in ulcer bleeding, again after 1979. This increase is particularly due to an increase in the incidence of duodenal ulcer bleeding (p < 0.001). Perforation did not undergo any statistically significant modifications over the three periods. Finally we witnessed a decrease in peptic stenosis, with a statistically significant decrease for gastric ulcer (p < 0.02