[Macroscopic and microscopic picture of the gastric mucosa in alcoholics]

The aim of the study was to compare a macroscopic and microscopic picture of the gastric mucosa of ethanol dependent patients admitted to the Kraków Department of Clinical Toxicology because of acute ethanol intoxications (n = 28) with those admitted because of ethanol withdrawal syndrome (n = 38). All the 66 study patients suffered from gastrointestinal tract symptoms. The mean age was 41.5 and mean duration of ethanol dependence was 10 years. The mean blood ethanol concentration in acutely intoxicated group was higher then 1 g/L, intensification of withdrawal syndrome in the group of non-acutely intoxicated patients was higher than 15 points according to CIWA scale. In the first day of hospitalization gastrointestinal endoscopy was performed and specimens from gastric corpus, antrial, and pyloric region mucosa were taken to histopathological examination. In 46 of still symptomatic patients a control gastroscopy and histopathological examination were performed after 10 days of controlled abstinence. A normal macroscopic picture of gastric mucosa was stated in 25% of acutely ethanol intoxicated patients and in 26% of those ethanol abusers who were admitted because of withdrawal syndrome. In 76% of all the examined patients a mild, superficial inflammatory changes localized mostly in distal part of the stomach were revealed by endoscopy. The symptoms of chronic inflammation and also the sings of inflammation's activity, mostly in antrum region, were revealed by histopathological examination in all the cases. The higher histopathological dynamics of inflammatory changes and higher inflammation's activity, mostly in the stomach distal part, were found in the patients suffering from ethanol withdrawal syndrome.