محمدحسین صومی - Liver and Gastrointestinal Diseases Research Centre, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
امیر طاهر افتخارالسادات - Imam Reza hospital, University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
محسن مسعودی - Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences, Hormozgan, Iran
مسعود شیر محمدی - Liver and Gastrointestinal Diseases Research Centre, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
شهناز نقاشی - Liver and Gastrointestinal Diseases Research Centre, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran

Background and Objective: Gastric cancer is a common cancer in East-Azerbaijan (Northwest of Iran). In a community with high rates of gastric cancer, dyspepsia may be a symptom of a serious problem. The main aims of this study were to evaluate the gastric mucosal changes in dyspeptic patients from Azerbaijan and to compare it with similar patients from Hormozgan (a community with low rates of gastric cancer in the South of Iran). Materials and Methods: In this analytic-descriptive setting, ۱۹۱ patients with dyspepsia were evaluated at the Tabriz Liver and Gastrointestinal Diseases Research Center. Upper endoscopy was done in all patients and biopsies were obtained from ۵ different points of the stomach, followed by histopathological assessments. Results: A total of ۱۰۱ patients from Azerbaijan (so-called Azari)‍‍ and ۹۰ patients from Hormozgan (so-called Bandari) were enrolled. Endoscopically determinable lesion was significantly more frequent in the patients from Hormozgan (۶۸.۳% case vs. ۸۱.۱% control x۲test P=۰.۰۳). HP infection was determined in ۶۹.۳ and ۸۴.۱ percent of the patients from Azarbayjon and Hormozgan, respectively. Active chronic and chronic gastritis were found in ۷۲.۳% and ۲۳.۸% of Azari group and ۷۳.۶% and ۲۵.۳% of Bandari group. In those patients with gastritis, corpus predominant or pangastritis was more common in the Bandari group (۶۴.۱% Azari vs. ۸۳.۳% in the Bandari). Chronic gastritis (Mean scores ۱۰.۹۶±۲.۸ Bandari v ۸.۵ ± ۳.۲ Azari, P<۰.۰۰۱, u=۲۴۹۴) and active gastritis (Mean scores ۷.۶ ± ۵.۷ Bandari vs. ۳.۴ ± ۳ Azari, P<۰.۰۰۱, u=۲۵۷۲) were severe in the Bandari group. No cases of displasia and adenocarcinoma were detected. Conclusion: Our findings show that endoscopically determinable lesion, HP infection, chronic and active chronic gastritis of gastric mucosa, and the corpus predominant or pangastritis were more common in the patients from Hormozgan.

Keywords: Dyspepsia, Gastric mucosal change, Helicobacter pillory, Gastric cancer