Aim. To investigate the presence of lesions of the upper gastrointestinal t
ract of asymptomatic, healthy volunteers undergoing clinical pharmacology s
tudies.
Material and Methods. A series of 53 volunteers (45 male, 23 Helicobacter p
ylori negative and 30 Helicobacter pylori positive) underwent upper gastroi
ntestinal endoscopy. Helicobacter pylori status was assessed using two meth
ods (rapid urease test and histology) from antral and corpus biopsies.
Results. Peptic lesions were found in 24 (45%) subjects: erosive oesophagit
is, gastric/duodenal ulcers and gastric/duodenal erosions were found in 23%
, 9% and 36% of these volunteers, respectively. Helicobacter pylori-positiv
e subjects had significantly (p<0.05) more gastroduodenal lesions than Heli
cobacter pylori negative individuals (12/30 vs 3/23). The presence of pepti
c ulcers and erosive oesophagitis was similar Helicobacter pylori-positive
and -negative individuals.
Conclusions. The possibility that peptic lesions might exist in otherwise a
symptomatic, healthy individuals cannot be ruled out. Helicobacter pylori-p
ositive individuals have a significantly higher incidence of gastric and du
odenal lesions than Helicobacter pylori negative subjects.