title: Progressive mucosal injury in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease and increasing peripheral blood eosinophil counts.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Peripheral blood eosinophil count increases with the degree of mucosal injury associated with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective review.
  
  
  METHODS
  Single-institution tertiary hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  Two hundred ninety-five patients (215 men and 80 women; median age, 57 years [interquartile range (IQR), 46-66 years]). One hundred had GERD without intestinal metaplasia, 100 had GERD with intestinal metaplasia, 40 had GERD with dysplasia, and 55 had GERD with intramucosal carcinoma. Results of complete blood count with differential and serum chemistry studies were compared among the groups using a nonparametric test for trend.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients with a higher degree of mucosal injury were older (P < .001). There were no differences between white blood count, percent neutrophil count, absolute neutrophil count, and hematocrit levels among the groups. Serum albumin level decreased as the degree of mucosal injury increased (P = .04) but lost significance when controlled for age (P = .53). Percent eosinophil counts were 2.0 (IQR, 1.3-2.8) in patients with GERD without intestinal metaplasia, 2.5 (IQR, 1.6-3.7) in GERD with intestinal metaplasia, 2.6 (IQR, 1.7-4.4) in GERD with dysplasia, and 2.7 (IQR, 1.5-4.3) in GERD with intramucosal carcinoma. This progressive increase in the percent eosinophil count was statistically significant (P = .006), remained significant after controlling for age (P = .04), and was also significant when measuring the absolute eosinophil count.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is a progressive increase in the percent and absolute peripheral blood eosinophil count associated with progressive mucosal injury in patients with GERD.
authors.affiliation: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, USA. farzaneh.banki@uth.tmc.edu
authors.forename: Farzaneh
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Banki
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Flanagan
authors.forename: Joerg
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zehetner
authors.forename: Analisa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Armstrong
authors.forename: Jeffrey A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Hagen
authors.forename: Amit
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Joshi
authors.forename: Raina
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sinha
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Arzu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Oezcelik
authors.forename: Steven R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: DeMeester
authors.forename: Emmanuele
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Abate
authors.forename: John C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Lipham
authors.forename: Parakrama
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chandrasoma
authors.forename: Peter F
authors.initials: PF
authors.lastname: Crookes
authors.forename: Tom R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: DeMeester
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018450:Disease Progression; D004804:Eosinophils; D005260:Female; D005764:Gastroesophageal Reflux / Q000097:blood* / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009092:Mucous Membrane / Q000473:pathology