Factors associated with parietal cell autoantibodies in the general population

The presence in serum of parietal cell autoantibodies (PCA) is a characteristic of autoimmune gastritis. We determined the prevalence of PCA in the general population and investigate their association with type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance and lifestyle factors related with autoimmune gastritis. A cross-sectional study was performed, involving 429 individuals enrolled in a cohort study of the general population of the Canary Islands. All participants underwent physical examination, provided a blood sample and responded to a questionnaire regarding health and lifestyle factors. Serum concentrations of PCA, soluble CD40 ligand (sCD40L), C-peptide and glucose (to determine insulin resistance) were measured. The association of PCA with the other factors was determined with bivariate analysis, and logistic regression models were used to adjust the associations for age and sex. The prevalence of PCA was 7.8% (95% CI=10.3-5.3). The factors associated with PCA were female sex (p=0.032), insulin resistance (p=0.016), menopause (p=0.029) and sCD40L (p=0.019). Alcohol consumption (p=0.006) and smoking (p=0.005) were associated with low prevalences of PCA. After adjustment for age and sex, the association with PCA was confirmed for smoking (OR=0.1 [0.0-0.9]), alcohol consumption (OR=0.3 [0.1-0.9]), insulin resistance (OR=2.4 [1.1-4.9]), female sex (OR=2.4 [1.1-5.3]), sCD40L (OR=3.7 [1.2-11.4]) and menopause (OR=5.3 [1.2-23.3]). In conclusion, smoking and alcohol consumption acted as protective factors against the appearance of PCA in the general population, whereas female sex, menopause, insulin resistance and elevated serum sCD40L were risk markers for PCA. In patients who smoke or drink alcohol, clinicians should be cautious when using PCA to rule out autoimmune gastritis.