ORIGINAL ARTICLES   

Minerva Gastroenterologica e Dietologica 2010 March;56(1):13-17

Copyright © 2010 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

Accuracy of serum pepsinogens I and II, gastrin-17 and anti-helicobacter pylori antibodies in histological diagnoses of atrophic gastritis

Irvani S. ¹, Hashemi M. R. ¹, Moghadam K. G. ², Saeidee S. ¹, Khavaran K. ¹, Najari O. ³, Ranavardi M. ³, Nasiri S. ³, Salmasian H. ⁴, Rohanizadegan M. ⁴ ✉

¹ Department of Gastroenterology, Army University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; ² Department of Pathology, Army University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; ³ Army University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; ⁴ Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

AIM: Atrophic gastritis is defined as a chronic inflammatory process in gastric mucosa leading to loss of glandular cells. It is considered a precancerous condition, thus its early diagnosis is of importance. Although histo-pathologic studies remain as the gold standard of diagnosis, non-invasive methods suitable for screening purposes are being developed. This includes measurement of serum gastric profile.
METHODS: Two hundred and fifty 250 patients who were planned to undergo upper gastrointestinal endoscopy were randomly selected to be included in this study. Serum levels of pepsinogen I and II, gastrin-17 and anti-Helicobacter pylori (Hp) antibody were measured and the results were compared with that of histopathologic assessment of biopsy specimens obtained during endoscopy.
RESULTS: IgG anti-Hp, PGII and PGI/PGII ratio showed correlation with age. PGI/PGII ratio showed best sensitivity (96.1%) and negative predictive value (97.7%). PGI has the highest specificity (94.6%), and PGII also had a high negative predictive value (90.7%). IgG anti-Hp showed poor sensitivity and specificity (58.8% and 26.5%, respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: Pepsinogen I/II ratio appears to be the most suitable single measurement for screening purposes in atrophic gastritis.