OBJECTIVETo analyze the clinical characteristics and treatment of eosinophilic gastroenteritis (EG) in children.

METHODA retrospective analysis of the clinical manifestation, laboratory test, endoscopy, biopsy, bone marrow examination and treatment of 6 children diagnosed with EG in Beijing Children's Hospital seen from Jun. 2005 to May 2009 was performed.

RESULTFive of the cases were boys and 1 was girl, the range of age was from 2 to 13 years; food allergy test was positive in 4 cases. Clinical manifestations included:abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, digestive tract hemorrhage, and ascites was found in 4 children. The eosinophilic cell count in blood increased in 5 cases [(160 - 13,560) × 10(6)/L]. The percentage of eosinophilic cell in bone marrow increased in 6 cases (0.18 - 0.41). Beside stomach and duodenum, anatomical foci were found in mesentery (5 cases), small intestine (4 cases), colon (3 cases), and esophagus (2 cases). Endoscopy and imaging showed edema, congestion, erosion, ulcer, bile reflux and gastric juice retention. Stomach and duodenum pathological changes included epithelial erosion, large quantities of eosinophilic cell infiltration in lamina propria and scattered lymphoid cells, which were more obvious in duodenum. In the group received glucocorticoid therapy, clinical symptoms disappeared 3 days later, the eosinophilic cell count in blood returned to normal one-week later;in the group of non-glucocorticoid therapy, most of the clinical symptoms disappeared after two weeks. The eosinophilic cell count in blood was still high 5 weeks later.

CONCLUSIONCompared to the common gastroenteritis, gastrointestinal symptoms in EG cases were nonspecific, the increase of blood eosinophilic cells can suggest the possibility of EG, but biopsy is the key to the diagnosis of EG. The therapeutic effect of glucocorticoid seemed to be better than non-glucocorticoid therapies in the improvement of clinical symptoms and the decrease of blood eosinophilic cell.