HELICOBACTER-PYLORI INFECTION AND FASTING SERUM GASTRIN-LEVELS IN A SERIES OF ENDOSCOPICALLY DIAGNOSED GASTRIC POLYPS

The occurrence of H. pylori infection and the levels of fasting serum gastrin (SEGA) were examined in 97 patients with different morphologic al types of endoscopically diagnosed gastric polyps. According to the histology of the polyps the series was divided into three groups: infl ammatory polyps (43 cases), polyps with foveolar hyperplasia (25 cases ), and hyperplastic polyps including adenomas (29 cases). The prevalen ce of H. pylori infection was significantly lower in patients with hyp erplastic polyps (45%) and foveolar hyperplasia (48%) than in the grou p with inflammatory polyps (81%). SEGA levels were higher in patients with hyperplastic polyps (mean+/-sd: 335+/-298 pmoL/l) and foveolar hy perplasia (183+/-216) than in patients with inflammatory polyps (89+/- 127). Signs of so-called ''autoimmune'' gastritis, i.e. corpus atrophy and presence of parietal cell antibodies, were commonly found in pati ents with hyperplastic polyps and foveolar hyperplasia, but rarely in patients with inflammatory polyps. These results suggest that the poly ps with hyperplastic changes (hyperplastic polyps and foveolar hyperpl asia) are in some of the cases closely related to autoimmune gastritis . The presence of corpus atrophy, hypoacidity and various types of met aplasia, which characterizes autoimmune gastritis, could explain the l ow prevalence of H. pylori and the high SEGA le;els found in these pat ients.