Peptic ulcer is known to rank very high among the diseases of the gastrointestinal system which seem most prevalent in this country. Although it's incidence in this country is difficult to know with any degree of precision at present because few statistical reports are available, it is frequently encountered in our daily practice. Many studies on the pathogenesis of the disease from the clincial aspect as well as the experimental, have been undertaken by many investigators. No definite conclusions, however, have been arrived at, and thus more diverse and intensified research is urgently required. The following studies, carried out in an effort to further elucidate the pathogenic mechanism, are reported here.
Female ; Human ; Male ; Peptic Ulcer/*etiology/pathology

One in 10 people suffer from functional dyspepsia (FD), a clinical syndrome comprising chronic bothersome early satiety, or postprandial fullness, or epigastric pain or burning. Postprandial distress syndrome (PDS, comprising early satiety and/or postprandial fullness) and epigastric pain syndrome (EPS) are increasingly accepted as valid clinical entities, based on new insights into the pathophysiology and the results of clinical trials. Diagnosis is based on the clinical history, and exclusion of peptic ulcer and cancer by endoscopy. Evidence is accumulating FD and gastroesophageal ref lux disease are part of the same disease spectrum in a major subset. The causes of FD remain to be established, but accumulating data suggest infections and possibly food may play an important role in subsets. FD does not equate with no pathology; duodenal eosinophilia is now an accepted association, and Helicobacter pylori infection is considered to be causally linked to dyspepsia although only a minority will respond to eradication. In those with EPS, acid suppression therapy is a first line therapy; consider a H2 blocker even if proton pump inhibitor fails. In PDS, a prokinetic is preferred. Second line therapy includes administration of a tricyclic antidepressant in low doses, or mirtazapine, but not a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor.
Burns ; Diagnosis ; Duodenum ; Dyspepsia* ; Endoscopy ; Eosinophilia ; Eosinophils ; Helicobacter pylori ; Pathology ; Peptic Ulcer ; Proton Pumps ; Serotonin

OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinical epidemiology change trend of upper gastrointestinal bleeding (UGIB) over the past 15 years.

METHODSConsecutive patients who was diagnosed as continuous UGIB in the endoscopy center of The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun-Yat University during the period from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 1998 and the period from 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2013 were enrolled in this study. Their gender, age, etiology, ulcer classification, endoscopic treatment and hospitalization mortality were compared between two periods.

RESULTSIn periods from 1997 to 1998 and 2012 to 2013, the detection rate of UGIB was 9.99%(928/9 287) and 4.49%(1 092/24 318)(χ=360.089, P=0.000); the percentage of male patients was 73.28%(680/928) and 72.44% (791/1 092) (χ=0.179, P=0.672), and the onset age was (47.3±16.4) years and (51.4±18.2) years (t=9.214, P=0.002) respectively. From 1997 to 1998, the first etiology of UGIB was peptic ulcer bleeding, accounting for 65.2%(605/928)[duodenal ulcer 47.8%(444/928), gastric ulcer 8.3%(77/928), stomal ulcer 2.3%(21/928), compound ulcer 6.8%(63/928)],the second was cancer bleeding(7.0%,65/928), and the third was esophageal and gastric varices bleeding (6.4%,59/928). From 2012 to 2013, peptic ulcer still was the first cause of UGIB, but the ratio obviously decreased to 52.7%(575/1092)(χ=32.467, P=0.000)[duodenal ulcer 31.9%(348/1092), gastric ulcer 9.4%(103/1092), stomal ulcer 2.8%(30/1092), compound ulcer 8.6%(94/1092)]. The decreased ratio of duodenal ulcer bleeding was the main reason (χ=53.724, P=0.000). Esophageal and gastric varices bleeding became the second cause (15.1%,165/1 092, χ=38.976, P=0.000), and cancer was the third cause (9.2%,101/1 092, χ=3.352, P=0.067). The largest increasing amplitude of the onset age was peptic ulcer bleeding [(46.2±16.7) years vs. (51.9±18.9) years, t=-5.548, P=0.000), and the greatest contribution to the amplitude was duodenal ulcer bleeding [(43.4±15.9) years vs. (48.4±19.4) years, t=-3.935, P=0.000], while the onset age of esophageal and gastric varices bleeding [(49.8±14.1) years vs. (48.8±13.9) years, t=0.458, P=0.648] and cancer [(58.4±13.4) years vs. (58.9±16.7) years, t=-0.196, P=0.845] did not change significantly. Compared with the period from 1997 to 1998, the detection rate of high risk peptic ulcer rebleeding (Forrest stage I(a, I(b, II(a and II(b) increased (χ=39.958, P=0.000) in the period from 2012 to 2013. From 1997 to 1998, 54 patients underwent endoscopic treatment, and the achievement ratio of hemostasis was 79.6% (43/54). From 2012 to 2013, 261 patients underwent endoscopic treatment and the achievement ratio of hemostasis was 96.9%(253/261), which was significantly higher (χ=23.287, P=0.000). Compared to the period from 1997 to 1998, more patients with variceal bleeding or non-variceal bleeding received endoscopic treatment in time (39.0% vs. 70.3%, χ=51.930, P=0.000; 3.6% vs. 15.6%, χ=62.292, P=0.000, respectively), and higher ratio of patients staging Forrest stage I(a to II(b also received endoscopic treatment in the period from 2012 to 2013 [27.4%(26/95) vs. 68.5%(111/162), χ=40.739, P=0.000]. More qualified endoscopic hemostatic techniques were used, containing thermocoagulation (0 vs. 15.2%, χ=79.518, P=0.000), hemostatic clip (0 vs. 55.9%, χ=20.879, P=0.000), hemostatic clip combined with thermocoagulation (4.3% vs. 16.4%, χ=5.154, P=0.023), while less single injection was used (87.1% vs. 6.2%, χ=10.420, P=0.001), and single spraying for hemostasis was completely abandoned in the period from 2012 to 2013. The ratio of inpatients undergoing reoperation decreased obviously in the period from 2012 to 2013 [9.3%(86/928) vs. 6.0%(65/1092), χ=7.970, P=0.005], while no significant difference was found in mortality during hospitalization between two periods.

CONCLUSIONCompared with the period from 1997 to1998, the mean onset age of UGIB increased, and the ratio of peptic ulcer bleeding decreased due to the reduction of duodenal ulcer bleeding, the detection rate of high risk peptic ulcer rebleeding increased, the cure rate of endoscopic treatment for UGIB increased, more reasonable and immediate hemostatic methods were used, but overall mortality did not change obviously in the period from 2012 to 2013.

Adult ; Age of Onset ; Aged ; Electrocoagulation ; methods ; trends ; Endoscopy, Digestive System ; trends ; Esophageal and Gastric Varices ; pathology ; therapy ; Esophagus ; pathology ; Female ; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage ; classification ; epidemiology ; etiology ; mortality ; Gastrointestinal Neoplasms ; pathology ; Hemostasis, Endoscopic ; methods ; trends ; Hemostatic Techniques ; trends ; Hemostatics ; therapeutic use ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Peptic Ulcer ; pathology ; therapy ; Peptic Ulcer Hemorrhage ; pathology ; therapy ; Reoperation ; trends ; Stomach Ulcer ; pathology ; therapy ; Surgical Instruments ; trends ; Ulcer ; epidemiology ; therapy

Phytobezoar is rare disease in the stomach and small bowel of the patient without underlying previous gastroenterologic pathology. Because it usually occurs secondarily to peptic ulcer surgery, poor mastication, diabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism and connetive tissue disease. In morden medicine, phytobezoars found in the stomach and/or intestines in humans, are known to be associated with considerable morbidity and even mortality. Patients with gastric bezoar present with chronic postprandial epigastic pain, nausea, and vomitihg. It is diagnosed by endoscopic examination or radiologic study and treated by surgical removal or non-surgical methods including conservative treatment, enzymatic dissolution, and endoscopic removal. We have experienced a case of small intestinal obstruction due to a fragment of gastric bezoar of the patient without underlying etiologic cause. So we report the case with a brief review of literatures.
Bezoars ; Diabetes Mellitus ; Humans ; Hypothyroidism ; Intestinal Obstruction* ; Intestines ; Mastication ; Mortality ; Nausea ; Pathology ; Peptic Ulcer ; Rare Diseases ; Stomach

For evaluation on the histopathologic studies, and age and sex distribution of the gatric carcinomas in the Taegu Area, the gastrectomized and gastroscopic biopsy materials were collected at the Department of Pathology, College of Medicine, Yeungnam University, and the analyzed results were as follows: 1. In total of 350 cases of gastroscopic biopsy materials adenocarcinomas are 344 cases (98.3%), squamous cell carcinomas and undifferentiated carcinomas are only 6 cases (1.7%). In adenocarcinomas the most of all are tubular type, 215 cases (61.4%). In age distribution the highest is the 50th age group, and 120 cases (34.3%), the next 60th, 81 cases (23.1%), 40th, 76 cases (21.7%), respectively. 2. In total of 130 cases of gastrectomized materials adenocarcinomas are 127 cases (97.7%), and are the highest incidence, the next, carcinomas originated from chronic peptic ulcer of the stomach, and are 3 cases (2.3%). In adenocarcinomas the highest are tubular type, 86 cases (66.2%), the next, signet ring cell type, 20 cases (15.4%). The highest age incidence of the age group is 50th, and the next, 60th, 40th, 30th, 70th and 10th age group, respectively.
Adenocarcinoma ; Age Distribution ; Biopsy ; Carcinoma ; Carcinoma, Squamous Cell ; Daegu* ; Humans ; Incidence ; Pathology ; Peptic Ulcer ; Sex Distribution ; Stomach*

BACKGROUND/AIMS: In western courtry, Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) serology is a screening test for non-ulcer dyspepsia (NUD) before endoscopy in dyspeptic patients under 45 years old without alarm symptoms. The aim of this study was to determine the usefulness of H. pylori serology before endoscopy in Korea. METHODS: Six hundred and fifteen outpatients (M:F=339:276, mean age 43.6+/-13.8, range 15-81) with dyspepsia performed anti-H. pylori IgG (GAP or HM-CAP) and upper gastrointestinal endoscopy with biopsy. Exclusion criteria were alarm symptoms, history of gastrectomy, NSAID use and previous anti-H. pylori treatment. RESULTS: The prevalence of anti-H. pylori IgG was 61.0% in patients under and 40 years old and 63.8% in patients over 40 years old. There was no significant difference between age groups. For patients under and 40 years old, serology predicted all pathology except 5 gastric ulcer, 8 duodenal ulcer, 2 reflux esophagitis and 2 gastric submucosal tumor. The sensitivity and negative predictive value (76.7, 85.8%) in patients under and 40 years old were higher than that (61.9, 64.0%) in patients over 40 years old (p=0.037, p=0.001). CONCLUSIONS: H. pylori serology seems to be an acceptable screening test for NUD in dyspeptic patients under and 40 years old without alarm symptoms.
Adult ; Biopsy ; Duodenal Ulcer ; Dyspepsia* ; Endoscopy ; Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal ; Esophagitis, Peptic ; Gastrectomy ; Helicobacter pylori* ; Helicobacter* ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; Korea ; Mass Screening ; Middle Aged ; Outpatients ; Pathology ; Prevalence ; Stomach Ulcer

Behcet's disease (BD) has been recognized as multi-systemic chronic vasculitic disorder of recurrent inflammation, characterized by the involvement of multiple organs and resulting in orogenital ulcers, uveitis, and skin lesions. Involvement of the central nervous system, vessels, and intestines in BD often leads to a poor prognosis. Digestive manifestations in BD have been reported in up to 1-60% of cases, although the rate varies in different countries. The most frequent extra-oral sites of gastrointestinal involvement are the ileocecal region and the colon. Gastric or esophageal involvement is reported to be very rare. Moreover, there have been no reports on the simultaneous involvement of the esophagus, stomach, ileum, and colon. Here, we present a 55-year-old Korean man with intestinal BD and multiple ileal and colonic ulcerations complicated by perforation, gastric ulcer with bleeding followed by perforation, and esophageal ulcers with bleeding.
Behcet Syndrome/complications/*diagnosis/pathology ; Cecal Diseases/complications/pathology ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Endoscopy, Digestive System ; Gastrointestinal Diseases/complications/*diagnosis ; Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage ; Humans ; Intestinal Perforation/*diagnosis/etiology/pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Peptic Ulcer Perforation/pathology ; Stomach Ulcer/complications/pathology

BACKGROUND: Determination of vacA mosaicism may be important because specific Helicobacter pylori vacA genotype can be used to predict different clinical outcome. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship of vacA genotypes of Helicobacter pylori to cagA status and its development of peptic ulcer diseases in Korean patients. METHODS: Gastric biopsy specimens were obtained from 53 patients with gastric ulcer(GU), 57 with duodenal ulcer (DU) and 26 with chronic gastritis(CG) patients; all patients were infected with Helicobacter pylori. Bacterial mRNAs in the gastric mucosa were amplified by RT-PCR, using synthetic oligonucleotide primers specific for the vacA and the cagA gene. Patients with vacA s1 subtype were further examined to determine whether they had s1a or s1b subtype. RESULTS: There was no correlation in frequency of vacA s1 and/or s1a genotype between CG and either GU or DU, as the vacA s1 and s1a/m1 were present in the majority of strains independent of clinical status(s1 ; 100.0% versus 94.3 % or 93.0 % and s1a/m1 ; 76.9% versus 62.3% or 64.9%, res pectively). Likewise, there was no difference in the prevalence of the cagA gene between CG and either GU or DU patients (92.3% versus 90.6% or 98.2%, respectively). In addition, the cagA-negative status did not predict the presence of vacA s2 genotype. CONCLUSION: These results strongly suggest that either cagA or vacA s1 and/or s1a is not proved to be a useful marker to distinguish disease-specific Helicobacter pylori strains for the development of peptic ulcer diseases in Korean patients.
Adolescence ; Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bacterial Proteins/analysis* ; Base Sequence ; Biopsy, Needle ; Chi-Square Distribution ; Chronic Disease ; Duodenal Ulcer/pathology ; Duodenal Ulcer/genetics ; Female ; Gastritis/pathology ; Gastritis/genetics ; Genotype ; Helicobacter Infections/pathology ; Helicobacter Infections/genetics* ; Helicobacter pylori/genetics* ; Human ; Korea ; Male ; Middle Age ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Peptic Ulcer/pathology ; Peptic Ulcer/genetics* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Probability ; Prognosis ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Stomach Ulcer/pathology ; Stomach Ulcer/genetics ; Support, Non-U.S. Gov't ; Tissue Culture

Intramural duodenal hematoma is an uncommon condition, which usually develops after blunt abdominal trauma. It is also reported as a complication of anticoagulant therapy, blood dyscrasia, pancreatic disease, and diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy. The typical clinical pictures of intramural duodenal hematoma consist of upper abdominal pain, vomiting, fever, and hematochezia, and it is rarely accompanied by intestinal obstruction, peritonitis, and pancreatitis as its complication. We report a case of intramural duodenal hematoma extended to peritoneal cavity, and accompanied by acute pancreatitis following therapeutic endoscopy for duodenal ulcer bleeding in a 32-year-old man who was on maintenance of anti-coagulation therapy after valvular heart surgery.
Acute Disease ; Adult ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Duodenal Diseases/*diagnosis/pathology/surgery ; Duodenal Ulcer/*complications ; Hematoma/*diagnosis/pathology/surgery ; *Hemostasis, Endoscopic ; Humans ; Male ; Pancreatitis/complications/*diagnosis ; Peptic Ulcer Hemorrhage/*therapy ; Postoperative Complications ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed

Extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma is a recently recognized distinct entity within the World Health Organization classification of lymphoid tumors. It is relatively prevalent in Asian and South American populations. It most commonly occurs in the nasal or paranasal areas and less frequently in the skin, the soft tissue, and the gastrointestinal tract. Among these, extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma of the gastrointestinal tract has shown an aggressive clinical course. We report a case of CD56+ extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma presenting as a duodenal ulcer bleeding. A 62-year-old male patient presented with melena and abdominal pain. Endoscopic examination of the upper gastrointestinal tract showed the duodenal ulcer covered by blood clot. Pathologic examination revealed the diffuse infiltration of atypical lymphocytes with an angiocentric growth pattern, which was positive for CD3, CD56, and granzyme. The patient showed rapid deteriorating clinical course and died on day 14 after admission. Thus, we report this case with the review of literatures.
Antigens, CD3/metabolism ; Antigens, CD56/*metabolism ; Bone Marrow/pathology ; Duodenal Ulcer/*diagnosis ; Herpesvirus 4, Human/genetics/metabolism ; Humans ; Lymphoma, Extranodal NK-T-Cell/*diagnosis/pathology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Peptic Ulcer Hemorrhage/*diagnosis ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed