Comparison of Gastric Histology Among Swedish and Japanese Patients with Peptic Ulcer and Helicobacter pylori Infection

Background: The natural course of Helicobacter pylori gastritis may vary between different ethnic groups. Gastric histopathology and the occurrence of H. pylori organisms in the stomach were investigated in healed duodenal (DU) and gastric (GU) ulcer patients recruited in Sweden (S) and Japan (J) in an identical trial. Methods: In 203 patients (JGU = 39, JDU = 55, SDU = 109), various morphological gastritis variables and H. pylori were assessed from biopsy specimens obtained using a specific sampling protocol and interpreted according to guidelines of the updated Sydney grading system. Results: The ratio of GU:DU was observed to be very different between the recruited Japanese (39:55) and Swedish (0:109) patients. A comparison of data from SDU and JDU showed that the prevalence of H. pylori infection and the antral predominant gastritis demonstrated by both SDU and JDU were essentially identical. A comparison of data from JDU and JGU demonstrated a greater prevalence of H. pylori infection in the antrum, ...