Campylobacter-like organisms in chronic gastritis, peptic ulcer, and gastric carcinoma

Biopsy samples were taken from the gastric mucosa of 209 patients endoscoped for dyspepsia symptoms. Campylobacter-like organisms (CLOs) were cultured from 74 of 179 (41.4%) cases and seen in sections from 110 of 209 (52.6%) cases and in smears from 119 of 209 (56.9%) cases; totally, 145 of 209 cases were positive, giving a rate of 69.4%. CLOs were positive in 45 of the 57 (78.9%) patients with superficial gastritis, in 52 of the 64 (81.3%) with atrophic gastritis, in 18 of the 21 (85.7%) with gastric ulcer, in 12 of the 14 (85.7%) with duodenal ulcer, and in 8 of the 10 (80.0%) with stump gastritis, whereas only a few CLOs were found in 3 of the 15 (20.0%) histologically normal subjects and in 7 of the 28 (25.0%) patients with gastric carcinoma. The organisms seem to live more frequently in diseased mucosa and are chiefly recognized through their characteristic morphology and habitat. A significant association between the presence of CLOs and chronic gastritis or peptic ulcer disease was noted, and the positive rate and the number of CLOs correlated highly with the activity of chronic gastritis. No such correlation was observed in gastric carcinoma. These findings support the view that CLOs may be etiologically related to chronic gastritis and peptic ulceration, even though their precise role still remains to be determined.