Associated factors of atrophic gastritis diagnosed by double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography: a cross-sectional study analyzing 6,901 healthy subjects in Japan

Higher proportions of a healthy gastric mucosa in healthy Japanese adults with later birth year: analysis of 41 957 participants

BACKGROUND

In Japan, most gastric cancers are associated with gastric mucosal atrophy caused by chronic infection with Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). Recognizing the condition of the gastric mucosa and determining the infection status of H. pylori are important for predicting the individual risk of gastric cancer. This study aimed to determine the proportion of Japanese adults with a healthy gastric mucosa (without H. pylori infection) among 12 birth-year groups encompassing 1935-1990 by morphological images.

METHODS

The gastric mucosa was classified as healthy or having gastritis based on routine double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography. The participants included 41 957 healthy Japanese adults. Serum or urine H. pylori antibody levels were also assessed.

RESULTS

In total, 25 424 participants had healthy mucosa without a history of H. pylori eradication. The proportions of participants with a healthy mucosa by birth year were 19.8% (57/288), 27.1% (306/1128), 32.4% (569/1756), 37.6% (1808/4811), 49.2% (3207/6522), 60.1% (3966/6550), 71.2% (5224/7342), 77.2% (5114/6624), 80.6% (3342/4149), 85.0% (1404/1652), 85.3% (302/354) and 94.7% (125/132) in 1935, 1940, 1945, 1950, 1955, 1960, 1965, 1970, 1975, 1980, 1985 and after 1990, respectively (P for trend <0.01). All the participants with a healthy mucosa showed negative results in the H. pylori antibody tests.

CONCLUSIONS

The proportion of participants with normal gastric mucosa linearly increased with the birth years. The prevalence of morphologically healthy gastric mucosa could have consistently increased with decreasing prevalence of H. pylori infection.

Morphological study of the gastrointestinal tract around the ligament of Treitz using upper gastrointestinal radiography: Fundamental data for EUS-guided gastrojejunostomy

BACKGROUND/PURPOSE

We developed EUS-guided double-balloon occluded gastrojejunostomy (EPASS) for gastric drainage tract obstruction. The success of EPASS depends on the proximity of the stomach and the gastrointestinal (GI) tract near the ligament of Treitz. The aim of this study is to clarify the GI anatomy near the ligament of Treitz.

METHODS

One thousand and sixteen cases imaged upper GI radiography using barium were retrospectively evaluated. Morphologically, the GI tract running near the ligament of Treitz was divided in three types: Type I: The 4th portion of the duodenum (D4) approaches the stomach; Type II: D4 does not approach the stomach; Type III: D4 forms a loop to the jejunum. The minimum distance between the stomach and the GI tract near the ligament of Treitz was measured.

RESULTS

Based on the morphological classification, 74.6% in the study group was classified in Type I, 22.0% in Type II, and 3.3% in Type III, respectively. The median minimum distance in Type II/III group were significantly longer, compared with the Type I (P < .01).

CONCLUSIONS

The GI anatomy near the ligament of Treitz was clarified using upper GI radiography. It is divided into three patterns, and one-fourth of cases may have difficulty in EUS-guided gastrojejunostomy.

Clinicopathological features and prognosis of developed gastric cancer based on the diagnosis of mucosal atrophy and enlarged folds of stomach by double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography

BACKGROUND

Mucosal atrophy and enlarged folds of stomach by double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography (UGI-XR) are two major features of Helicobacter pylori-induced chronic gastritis. These were previously shown to be risk indicators of gastric cancer, but their predictability for clinicopathological characters of developed gastric cancer is unelucidated. In addition, evidence for decreasing the mortality of gastric cancer by appropriate follow-up of UGI screening is needed.

METHODS

The 5134 generally healthy UGI-XR examinees, who underwent follow-up UGI-XR or upper gastrointestinal endoscopy (UGI-ES) more than once, were prospectively observed for 10 years.

RESULTS

At the beginning of follow-up, 1515 (29.5%) had mucosal atrophy and 990 (19.5%) had enlarged folds. For the serum anti-H. pylori IgG, 1301 (25.3%) were positive, 177 (3.4%) were possibly positive, and 3656 (71.2%) were negative. During the 10-year observation period, gastric cancer developed in 15 subjects, among which 13 had mucosal atrophy and 10 had enlarged folds. These two features were expectedly useful indicators for gastric cancer incidence, but they showed no significant association with tumor stage or histological type of developed cancer. Only one of the 5134 subjects died of gastric cancer during 10 years, which was significantly lower than the predicted number of gastric cancer death (6.78 for 10 years) according to the mortality rate in Japan.

CONCLUSIONS

Neither mucosal atrophy nor enlarged folds of stomach showed a significant association with clinicopathological features of developed gastric tumors. Appropriate follow-up of cancer screening by UGI-XR or UGI-ES can reduce the risk of gastric cancer-related death.

Current status of first- and second-line Helicobacter pylori eradication therapy in the metropolitan area: a multicenter study with a large number of patients

BACKGROUND

The environment surrounding Helicobacter pylori eradication treatment is dramatically changing. Recently, vonoprazan, a first-in-class potassium-competitive acid blocker (P-CAB), was introduced onto the market in 2015. The aging of Japan's demographic structure is becoming pronounced. In this study, we examined the trend of the eradication rate of H. pylori in the metropolitan area and examined factors concerning successful eradication.

METHODS

We collected data from 20 hospitals in the Tokyo metropolitan area on patients who received first-line eradication therapy with a proton-pump inhibitor (PPI)/P-CAB, amoxicillin, and clarithromycin for 1 week and second-line eradication therapy with a PPI/P-CAB, amoxicillin, and metronidazole for 1 week from 2013 to 2018. The annual eradication rate and associated factors for successful eradication were analyzed.

RESULTS

We collected data of 4097 and 3572 patients in the first- and second-line eradication therapies, respectively. The eradication rate decreased from 2013 to 2014 and increased again from 2015 to 2018 with the first-line therapy [the eradication rates in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018 were 71.8%, 63.7%, 78.5%, 84.6%, 89.7 and 90.1%, respectively, in the per protocol (PP)]. The second-line eradication rates were 90.0%, 82.6%, 88.8%, 87.5%, 91.8% and 90.1% in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018, respectively, in PP. Vonoprazan was an independent factor for successful eradication in not only first-line, but also second-line eradication. Age over 75 years was an independent factor for eradication failure in both first- and second-line eradication therapies.

CONCLUSION

The eradication rate improved from 2015 to 2018 with the first-line therapy because of the introduction of vonoprazan in the market. The eradication rates with first- and second-line regimens in elderly patients were lower than those in younger patients.

Relationship between serum inflammatory cytokines and lifestyle factors in gastric cancer

Chronic inflammation is associated with increased risk of gastric cancer (GC), and GC risk is significantly associated with lifestyle. The aim of the present study was to explore the association between serum inflammatory cytokines and lifestyle factors in GC. A total of 20 serum inflammatory cytokines were measured in a hospital-based case-control population with 142 GC patients and 98 healthy controls. Controls without the selected healthy lifestyle factors were regarded as baseline, and correlation analysis was conducted to establish the association between serum inflammatory cytokines and lifestyle factors. The results demonstrated that several lifestyle factors (including eating fried and salty foods, eating quickly, smoking and drinking) could increase the risk of GC, while only eating fresh fruits could decrease the risk of GC. Correlation analysis revealed that increased serum interleukin (IL)-12/IL-23P40 levels was associated with GC risk as significant differences were observed in all lifestyle factors. Increased serum IL-8 was closely associated with smoking in GC patients, while increased IL-17α and IL-8 levels were associated with GC patients who ate salty foods. Increased IL-10 and decreased TGF-β levels were also associated with GC patients who ate fresh fruits. In conclusion, GC risk was strongly affected by lifestyle factors, which may regulate the expression of inflammatory cytokines and promote gastric carcinogenesis.

Risk factors for atrophic gastritis in the Japanese young and middle-aged: a study using double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography

PURPOSE

To identify risk factors for atrophic gastritis in Japanese young and middle-age subjects by double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography (UGI-XR).

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We included 351 consecutive Japanese subjects (158 males, 193 females; age 25-49 years, mean 44 years) seen between October 2014 and March 2016. All underwent serum Helicobacter pylori (Hp) antibody- and UGI-XR examinations. Two radiologists independently recorded their UGI-XR findings of atrophic gastritis (AG). Interobserver agreement was assessed by calculating the kappa (κ) coefficient. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to investigate the association between AG and the subjects' gender, smoking habit, alcohol intake, body mass index, and Hp infection.

RESULTS

AG was diagnosed in 85 subjects (24%) on UGI-XR images; interobserver agreement was good (κ = 0.745). By univariate analysis, the male gender and a high serum Hp titer (IgG ≥ 10 U/ml) were significantly association with AG (p < 0.05). Multivariate analysis revealed that a high serum Hp titer was the only independent, significant factor (p < 0.05). The odds ratio for a high serum Hp titer was 128 (95% CI, 54.8-498.4).

CONCLUSION

Our UGI-XR study indicated that Hp infection was significantly associated with AG in Japanese young and middle-aged subjects.

Preliminary study of automatic gastric cancer risk classification from photofluorography

AIM

To perform automatic gastric cancer risk classification using photofluorography for realizing effective mass screening as a preliminary study.

METHODS

We used data for 2100 subjects including X-ray images, pepsinogen I and II levels, PGI/PGII ratio, Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) antibody, H. pylori eradication history and interview sheets. We performed two-stage classification with our system. In the first stage, H. pylori infection status classification was performed, and H. pylori-infected subjects were automatically detected. In the second stage, we performed atrophic level classification to validate the effectiveness of our system.

RESULTS

Sensitivity, specificity and Youden index (YI) of H. pylori infection status classification were 0.884, 0.895 and 0.779, respectively, in the first stage. In the second stage, sensitivity, specificity and YI of atrophic level classification for H. pylori-infected subjects were 0.777, 0.824 and 0.601, respectively.

CONCLUSION

Although further improvements of the system are needed, experimental results indicated the effectiveness of machine learning techniques for estimation of gastric cancer risk.

Gastric polyps diagnosed by double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography mostly arise from the Helicobacter pylori-negative stomach with low risk of gastric cancer in Japan

BACKGROUND

Double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography (UGI-XR) is a method broadly used for gastric cancer screening in Japan. Gastric polyp is one of the most frequent findings detected by UGI-XR, but how to handle it remains controversial.

METHODS

Gastric polyps of the 17,264 generally healthy subjects in Japan who underwent UGI-XR or upper gastrointestinal endoscopy (UGI-ES) in 2010 were analyzed.

RESULTS

Of the 6,433 UGI-XR examinees (3,405 men and 3,028 women, 47.4 ± 9.0 years old), gastric polyps were detected in 464 men (13.6 %) and 733 women (24.2 %) and were predominantly developed on the non-atrophic gastric mucosa (p < 0.0001). Multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the presence of gastric polyps has significant association with lower value of serum anti-Helicobacter pylori IgG titer, female gender, lighter smoking habit, older age, and normal range of body mass index (≥18.5 and <25), but not with drinking or serum pepsinogen I/II ratio. During the 3-year follow-up, gastric cancer occurred in 7 subjects (0.11 %), but none of them had gastric polyps at the beginning of the follow-up period. Of the 2,722 subjects with gastric polyps among the 10,831 UGI-ES examinees in the same period, 2,446 (89.9 %) had fundic, 267 (9.8 %) had hyperplastic, and 9 (0.3 %) had adenomatous/cancerous polyps.

CONCLUSIONS

Gastric polyps diagnosed by UGI-XR predominantly arise on the Helicobacter pylori-negative gastric mucosa with a low risk of gastric cancer in Japan. In the prospective observation, none of the UGI-XR examinees with gastric polyps developed gastric cancer for at least 3 years subsequently.

Association between Increased Gastric Juice Acidity and Sliding Hiatal Hernia Development in Humans

Objectives

Several clinical factors; overweight, male gender and increasing age, have been implicated as the etiology of hiatal hernia. Esophageal shortening due to acid perfusion in the lower esophagus has been suggested as the etiological mechanism. However, little is known about the correlation between gastric acidity and sliding hiatus hernia formation. This study examined whether increased gastric acid secretion is associated with an endoscopic diagnosis of hiatal hernia.

Methods

A total of 286 consecutive asymptomatic patients (64 were diagnosed as having a hiatal hernia) who underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy were studied. Clinical findings including fasting gastric juice pH as an indicator of acid secretion, age, sex, body mass index, and Helicobacter pylori infection status determined by both Helicobacter pylori serology and pepsinogen status, were evaluated to identify predictors in subjects with hiatal hernia.

Results

Male gender, obesity with a body mass index >25, and fasting gastric juice pH were significantly different between subjects with and without hiatal hernia. The cut-off point of fasting gastric juice pH determined by receiver operating curve analysis was 2.1. Multivariate regression analyses using these variables, and age, which is known to be associated with hiatal hernia, revealed that increased gastric acid secretion with fasting gastric juice pH <2.1 (OR = 2.60, 95% CI: 1.38–4.90) was independently associated with hiatal hernia. Moreover, previously reported risk factors including male gender (OR = 2.32, 95% CI: 1.23–4.35), body mass index >25 (OR = 3.49, 95% CI: 1.77–6.91) and age >65 years (OR = 1.86, 95% CI: 1.00–3.45), were also significantly associated with hiatal hernia.

Conclusions

This study suggests that increased gastric acid secretion independently induces the development of hiatal hernia in humans. These results are in accordance with the previously reported hypothesis that high gastric acid itself induces hiatal hernia development.

Atrophic gastritis and enlarged gastric folds diagnosed by double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography are useful to predict future gastric cancer development based on the 3-year prospective observation

BACKGROUND

Double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography (UGI-XR) is the standard gastric cancer screening method in Japan. Atrophic gastritis and enlarged gastric folds are considered the two major features of Helicobacter pylori-induced chronic gastritis, but the clinical meaning of evaluating them by UGI-XR has not been elucidated.

METHODS

We analyzed healthy UGI-XR examinees without a history of gastrectomy, previous Helicobacter pylori eradication and usage of gastric acid suppressants.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

Of the 6433 subjects, 1936 (30.1 %) had atrophic gastritis and 1253 (19.5 %) had enlarged gastric folds. During the 3-year prospective observational follow-up, gastric cancer developed in seven subjects, six of whom (85.7 %) had atrophic gastritis with H. pylori infection and five of whom (71.4 %) had enlarged gastric folds with H. pylori infection. The Kaplan-Meier method with log-rank testing revealed that both UGI-XR-based atrophic gastritis (p = 0.0011) and enlarged gastric folds (p = 0.0003) are significant predictors for future gastric cancer incidence.

Comparative analysis of upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography, and the titer of serum anti-Helicobacter pylori IgG focusing on the diagnosis of atrophic gastritis

BACKGROUND

Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy (UGI-ES) and double-contrast upper gastrointestinal barium X-ray radiography (UGI-XR) are two major image-based methods to diagnose atrophic gastritis, which is mostly induced by Helicobacter pylori infection. However, there have been few studies directly comparing them.

METHODS

Atrophic gastritis was evaluated using the data of 962 healthy subjects who underwent UGI-ES and UGI-XR within 1 year.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSION

Based on UGI-ES and UGI-XR, 602 subjects did not have atrophic gastritis and 254 subjects did have it. Considering UGI-ES-based atrophic gastritis as the standard, sensitivity and specificity of UGI-XR-based atrophic gastritis were 92.0 % (254/276) and 92.8 % (602/649), respectively. The seven-grade Kimura-Takemoto classification of UGI-ES-based atrophic gastritis showed a strong and significant association with the four-grade UGI-XR-based atrophic gastritis. Sensitivity and specificity of serum anti-Helicobacter pylori IgG to detect UGI-ES/UGI-XR-based atrophic gastritis were 89.4 % (227/254) and 99.8 % (601/602), indicating that atrophic gastritis can be overlooked according to serum anti-Helicobacter pylori IgG alone.

Trend and risk factors of diverticulosis in Japan: age, gender, and lifestyle/metabolic-related factors may cooperatively affect on the colorectal diverticula formation

BACKGROUND

Despite the marked increase of diverticulosis, its risk factors have not been adequately elucidated. We therefore aim to identify significantly associated factors with diverticulosis. We also aim to investigate the present state of diverticulosis in Japan.

METHODS

We reviewed the medical records from 1990 to 2010 that included the data of consecutive 62,503 asymptomatic colonoscopy examinees from the general population in Japan. Most recent 3,327 examinees were analyzed with 16 background factors.

RESULTS

Among the 62,503 subjects (47,325 men and 15,178 women; 52.1 ± 9.2 years old), diverticulosis was detected in 11,771 subjects (18.8%; 10,023 men and 1,748 women). The incidences of diverticulosis in 1990-2000 and 2001-2010 were respectively 13.0% (3,771 of 29,071) and 23.9% (8,000 of 33,432): the latter was much higher than the former in all age groups and for both genders. Considering the anatomical locations of colorectal diverticula, left-sided ones have markedly increased with age but not significantly changed with times. Univariate analyses of the 3,327 subjects showed significant association of diverticulosis with four basic factors (age, sex, body mass index, blood pressure), three life style-related factor (smoking, drinking, severe weight increase in adulthood), and two blood test values (triglyceride, HbA1c). The multiple logistic analysis calculating standardized coefficients (β) and odds ratio (OR) demonstrated that age (β = 0.217-0.674, OR = 1.24-1.96), male gender (β = 0.185, OR = 1.20), smoking (β = 0.142-0.200, OR = 1.15-1.22), severe weight increase in adulthood (β = 0.153, OR = 1.17), HbA1c (β = 0.136, OR = 1.15), drinking (β = 0.109, OR = 1.11), and serum triglyceride (β = 0.098, OR = 1.10) showed significantly positive association with diverticulosis whereas body mass index and blood pressure did not.

CONCLUSIONS

The large-scale data of asymptomatic colonoscopy examinees from the general population from 1990 to 2010 indicated that the prevalence of diverticulosis is still increasing in Japan. Age, male gender, smoking, severe weight increase in adulthood, serum HbA1c, drinking, and serum triglyceride showed significant positive association with diverticulosis.

Helicobacter pylori infection is not associated with fatty liver disease including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: a large-scale cross-sectional study in Japan

BACKGROUND

Fatty liver disease (FLD) including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a rapidly emerging and widely recognized liver disease today, is regarded as a hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome. Helicobacter pylori, one of the most common pathogens worldwide, has been reported to be associated with metabolic syndrome, but whether there is a direct association with FLD is as of yet unclear. The aim of this study was to clarify the association of FLD and NAFLD with causative background factors including Helicobacter pylori infection.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study of Japanese adults who received medical checkups at a single medical center in 2010.Univariate and multivariate statistical analysis was performed to evaluate background factors for ultrasonography diagnosed FLD. Subjects free from alcohol influence were similarly analyzed for NAFLD.

RESULTS

Of a total of 13,737 subjects, FLD was detected in 1,456 of 6,318 females (23.0 %) and 3,498 of 7,419 males (47.1%). Multivariable analyses revealed that body mass index (standardized coefficients of females and males (β-F/M) =143.5/102.5), serum ALT (β-F/M = 25.8/75.7), age (β-F/M = 34.3/17.2), and platelet count (β-F/M = 17.8/15.2) were positively associated with FLD in both genders. Of the 5,289 subjects free from alcohol influence, NAFLD was detected in 881 of 3,473 females (25.4%) and 921 of 1,816 males (50.7%). Body mass index (β-F/M = 113.3/55.3), serum ALT (β-F/M = 21.6/53.8), and platelet count (β-F/M = 13.8/11.8) were positively associated with NAFLD in both genders. Metabolic syndrome was positively associated with FLD and NAFLD only in males. In contrast, Helicobacter pylori infection status was neither associated with FLD nor NAFLD regardless of gender.

CONCLUSIONS

Body mass index, serum ALT and platelet count were significantly associated with FLD and NAFLD, whereas infection of Helicobacter pylori was not.