title: Association between the body mass index and the risk of Barrett's esophagus in Japan.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We investigated the association between long-segment Barrett's esophagus and obesity in the Japanese population in a multicenter case-control trial.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred thirteen patients with endoscopically detected Barrett's esophagus with a length of more than 2 cm and the same number of sex- and age-matched controls were prospectively enrolled. Barrett's esophagus was diagnosed based on the Prague C and M criteria. The body mass index (BMI) of the subjects was categorized into the following groups: normal, BMI <22.9; overweight, BMI 23.0-24.9, and obese, BMI >25.0. To determine the association between BMI and the risk of Barrett's esophagus, multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The basically adjusted regression model adjusted for smoking and alcohol consumption revealed that overweight and obesity were significantly associated with an elevated risk of Barrett's esophagus (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.2-4.7, and OR 2.5, 95% CI 1.3-4.6, respectively). The intensity of the association was not attenuated even after adjustment for gastroesophageal reflux disease-related parameters.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An increased BMI was associated with an increased risk for Barrett's esophagus through a gastroesophageal reflux-independent mechanism in the Japanese population. Further, unlike in Caucasian populations, being even slightly overweight with a BMI of 23.0-24.9 was an independent risk factor in the Japanese population.
authors: Division of Gastroenterology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, Japan.
authors: Hirohiko
authors: H
authors: Shinkai
authors: Katsunori
authors: K
authors: Iijima
authors: Tomoyuki
authors: T
authors: Koike
authors: Yasuhiko
authors: Y
authors: Abe
authors: Naohiro
authors: N
authors: Dairaku
authors: Yoshifumi
authors: Y
authors: Inomata
authors: Syoichi
authors: S
authors: Kayaba
authors: Fumitake
authors: F
authors: Ishiyama
authors: Tomoyuki
authors: T
authors: Oikawa
authors: Motoki
authors: M
authors: Ohyauchi
authors: Hirotaka
authors: H
authors: Ito
authors: Sho
authors: S
authors: Asonuma
authors: Tatsuya
authors: T
authors: Hoshi
authors: Katsuaki
authors: K
authors: Kato
authors: Shuichi
authors: S
authors: Ohara
authors: Tooru
authors: T
authors: Shimosegawa
mesh_terms: D001471:Barrett Esophagus / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000209:etiology; D015992:Body Mass Index; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005764:Gastroesophageal Reflux / Q000150:complications; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications; D012307:Risk Factors