Reduction in serum pepsinogen I after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass

The excluded stomach after Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGBP) cannot be readily examined by endoscopy for obvious anatomic reasons. Thus it is difficult to monitor possible changes in the gastric mucosa. However, the type and severity of gastritis can now be assessed by a combination of serologic tests: pepsinogen I and antibodies to Helicobacter pylori and H,K-ATPase. Morbidly obese patients were examined before and 1 to 4 years after surgery. A group of 34 patients (mean age 39 years, BMI 44 kg/m(2)) underwent RYGBP; another group of 30 patients (mean age 42 years, BMI 44 kg/m(2)) had simple gastric restriction and served as control subjects. All patients, except one in the control group, had normal titers of pepsinogen I before surgery. One year after RYGBP, pepsinogen I levels were significantly reduced, as compared to the control group (P<0.0001), and remained low throughout the study. The control group had stable pepsinogen I levels. In both groups, few patients had increased titers of H. pylori or H,K-ATPase antibodies, but these abnormalities remained unchanged. Low pepsinogen I levels, similar to those we observed in our RYGBP patients, have been linked to chronic atrophic gastritis. However, the absence of food stimulation in the excluded stomach could also be a reason for the low pepsinogen I levels.