[Potentialities of a serological method in diagnosis of atrophic gastritis].

AIM: To analyse diagnostic potential of "serological gastrobiopsy" in patients with various gastroduodenal diseases. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 244 patients with gastroduodenal pathology have been examined. The diagnoses made morphologically were compared with those made by the serological method. The diagnosis of duodenal ulcer, gastric ulcer, atrophic gastritis, nonatrophic gastritis was made in 155, 31, 43 and 15 patients, respectively. The type of chronic gastritis was diagnosed by the levels of gastrin-17, pepsinogen I, pepsinogen II and antibodies to Helicobacter pylori in blood serum. The diagnoses made serologically were compared with those made morphologically. RESULTS: The highest accuracy of a serological diagnosis of mucosal atrophy of the antral stomach was observed in gastric ulcer (80.6%) and duodenal ulcer (71.6%) in high sensitivity and low specificity. The accuracy of the diagnosis of gastric body mucosa atrophy in atrophic gastritis was 60.5%, in gastric ulcer--51.6%, in duodenal ulcer 58.7% in high specificity and low sensitivity. Serological diagnosis of gastric atrophy was accurate in 71.7%. In weak morphological picture of gastric body atrophy false negative serological diagnosis is possible. No false positive results occurred in diagnosis of gastric body mucosal atrophy (specificity 100%). A negative correlation was found between the severity of gastric body atrophy and pepsinogen I serum level (r = -0.380), pepsinogen I to pepsinogen II in blood serum (r = -0.392). No differences were revealed in gastrin-17 levels in the serum in different atrophy severity in the antral mucosa. CONCLUSION: "Serological gastrobiopsy"provides satisfactory accuracy of atrophic gastritis diagnosis in gastroduodenal diseases.