Ciliated metaplasia in the gastric mucosa. Studies on Japanese patients

A total of 137 consecutive gastrectomy specimens from Japanese patients having either chronic peptic ulcer, focal (elevated) dysplasia or intramucosal carcinoma were scrutinized under high-power examination (X 1000) for the presence of ciliated cells. In 48 specimens (35.0%) ciliated cells were found in non-neoplastic dilated pyloric glands. The highest percentage was found in cases with focal (elevated) dysplasia (42.6%) or intramucosal carcinomas of intestinal type (41.6%) and the lowest in cases with intramucosal carcinoma of the diffuse type (15.4%) or chronic peptic ulcer (16.0%). Ciliated cells in the gastric mucosa seem therefore to be a common phenomenon in Japanese subjects and appear to be a new indication that the gastric mucosa of Japanese patients may differ from the gastric mucosa of Europeans.