MORPHOLOGICAL PECULIARITIES OF CHRONIC GASTRITIS IN PATIENTS WITH FUNCTIONAL DYSPEPSIA

Area of Science:

• Gastroenterology
• Pathology
• Clinical Medicine

Background:

• Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a prevalent condition characterized by chronic epigastric pain and fullness.
• Helicobacter pylori-associated gastritis is implicated in FD pathophysiology, but its specific roles require further elucidation.
• Understanding morphological differences in FD subtypes is crucial for targeted management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare gastroduodenal morphological changes in biopsy specimens between different types of functional dyspepsia.
• To investigate the association between Helicobacter pylori-associated gastritis and specific FD presentations.
• To evaluate gastritis, atrophy, metaplasia, and dysplasia grades in relation to FD subtypes.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional study involving adult subjects diagnosed with FD according to Rome IV criteria.
• Gastric biopsy specimens were collected using the Houston-updated protocol.
• Gastritis staging was performed using the OLGA and OLGIM systems by a blinded pathologist.

Main Results:

• No significant differences in gastric body and antral inflammation, activity, or metaplasia were observed between postprandial distress syndrome (PDS) and epigastric pain syndrome (EPS) groups.
• A significantly higher grade of antral atrophy was found in patients with PDS compared to EPS (p=0.002).
• No significant difference in gastric body atrophy was noted between the groups.

Conclusions:

• Antral atrophy is a key morphological differentiator between PDS and EPS subtypes of functional dyspepsia.
• These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of the heterogeneous nature of FD and its underlying pathologies.
• Further research into the clinical implications of differential atrophy patterns in FD is warranted.