Autoimmune gastritis: clinical and histological study in a Peruvian population

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Abstract
The diagnosis of autoimmune gastritis poses significant challenges, particularly in resource-limited settings where access to serological tests is restricted. This study aimed to evaluate the histological, endoscopic, and serological features of patients diagnosed with autoimmune gastritis in our population. We retrospectively reviewed cases diagnosed with autoimmune gastritis at two medical centers in Peru. Clinical data, serological and endoscopic reports were collected for each case, and gastric mucosal tissue samples from the antrum and corpus were histologically examined. Immunohistochemistry was also performed to evaluate neuroendocrine hyperplasia. Histologically, all 44 cases exhibited atrophy in the corpus, with the majority presenting at advanced stages of the disease (84%). However, endoscopic findings did not correlate with histology, as only 59.09% of cases showed corpus atrophy on endoscopy. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed neuroendocrine hyperplasia in all cases (100%). Anti-intrinsic factor antibody was positive in only 25% of cases, whereas 84.1% showed positivity for anti-parietal cell antibodies. Histological evaluation of autoimmune gastritis cases demonstrates significant diagnostic potential, offering an effective alternative to costly and less accessible serological tests, particularly in resource-limited settings like ours.

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