title: Clinical characteristics of Japanese reflux esophagitis patients as determined by Los Angeles classification.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recent studies have shown that the number of patients with reflux esophagitis is increasing in Japan, but the prevalence and risk factors associated with reflux esophagitis in Japanese patients are not well defined.
  
  
  METHODS
  By using all endoscopic records in the Katta General Hospital from April through to September 1999, we identified 392 patients. We examined the Los Angeles classification, peptic ulcer, gastric mucosal atrophy, hiatal hernia and other medical variable factors for their contribution to esophagitis in the patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients (13.8%) were diagnosed as having reflux esophagitis with a mucosal break. In a multivariate analysis, reflux esophagitis was associated with hiatal hernia (odds ratio (OR) 2.276, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.164-4.450), with patients over 65 years of age (OR 2.521, 95% CI 1.238-5.134) and the open type of gastric mucosal atrophy (OR 0.420, 95% CI 0.225-0.785). There was no significant difference between esophagitis and Helicobacter pylori infection and peptic ulcer.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We observed that age, hiatal hernia and a lower rate of gastric mucosal atrophy were associated with the proportion of mucosal breaks accompanying esophagitis.
authors.affiliation: Third Department of Internal Medicine, Yokohama City University School of Medicine, Yokohama, Japan. inamorim@med.yokohama-cu.ac.jp
authors.forename: Masahiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Inamori
authors.forename: Jun-Ichi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Togawa
authors.forename: Hajime
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nagase
authors.forename: Yasunobu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Abe
authors.forename: Tadashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Umezawa
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nakajima
authors.forename: Toshifumi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Saito
authors.forename: Norio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ueno
authors.forename: Katsuaki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.forename: Hisahiko
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sekihara
authors.forename: Hiroki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kaifu
authors.forename: Hideo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tsuboi
authors.forename: Hideyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kayama
authors.forename: Shizuo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tominaga
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nagura
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D001284:Atrophy; D004942:Esophagitis, Peptic / Q000145:classification / Q000209:etiology*; D004945:Esophagoscopy; D005260:Female; D005753:Gastric Mucosa / Q000473:pathology*; D006551:Hernia, Hiatal / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors