AN ENDOSCOPIC STUDY ON RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HELICOBACTER-PYLORI INFECTION AND ENDOSCOPIC GASTRIC-ULCER SCARS

A two-year endoscopic follow-up study of 45 gastric ulcer patients was conducted in order to ascertain the relationship between Helicobacter pylori infection, the transformation of ulcer scar patterns, and ulce r relapse during maintenance therapy. Endoscopic findings of gastric u lcer scar patterns, which established the quality of ulcer scars, were classified as follows: Sa, with a central depression, Sb, with a coar se regenerating mucosal pattern up to the center, and Sc, with a fine pattern. The proportion of ulcer relapses was 62% among 29 H. pylori-p ositive patients and 0% among 16 H. pylori-negative patients. In regar d to the relationship between H. pylori infection and scar patterns, 9 4% of the H. pylori-negative; patients displayed Sc scar patterns, whi le all the H. pylori-positive patients showed various scar patterns, i e, Sa in 38%, Sb in 28%, and Sc in 10%. Ulcer relapses in the H. pylor i-positive cases were limited to the Sa and Sb groups (100% and 88%, r espectively). In conclusion, our results indicate that H, pylori infec tion plays an important role in the transformation of the ulcer scar p atterns which relate to ulcer relapse.