title: Gastric atrophy: use of OLGA staging system in practice.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study used the OLGA system to characterize the histology pattern of gastritis in dyspeptic outpatients with a mean age of 45 years from regions with different gastric cancer risks.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Several classification systems have been purposed for understanding the status of the gastric mucosa. Currently, the Sydney system is the most widely employed. Nevertheless, the applicability of the Sydney system in therapeutic and prognostic areas is a matter of debate. Given this shortcoming an international group of gastroenterologists and pathologists developed a new system named Operative Link on Gastritis Assessment (OLGA).
  
  
  METHODS
  In this cross-sectional comparative study the OLGA system was used to characterize the histology pattern of gastritis in 685 dyspeptic patients referring to the department of gastroenterology of a training hospital.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No significant correlation was found between active inflammation and total OLGA score (P > 0.05). Also, no statistically significant correlation was found between activity and intestinal metaplasia, dysplasia, atrophy, and cancer (P > 0.05). Even though, there is a positive correlation between mild chronic inflammation and total OLGA score, no correlation has been identified between chronicity and dysplasia or cancer (P > 0.05). Nearly, In all cases with no dysplasia OLGA score was zero but all patients with gastric cancer OLGA score was more than two.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Generally, the activity is not a useful factor in predicting prognosis and its loss of relation with total OLGA score does not make OLGA score any less predictable.
authors.affiliation: Pathology Department, Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases Research Center, Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mahsa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Molaei
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ara
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ehtiati
authors.affiliation: Pathology Department, Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases Research Center, Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Reza
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Mashayekhi
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mitra
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rafizadeh
authors.affiliation: Pathology Department, Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases Research Center, Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Homayoun
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zojaji
authors.affiliation: Pathology Department, Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases Research Center, Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Dariush
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mirsattari
authors.affiliation: Basic and Molecular Epidemiology of Gastroenterology Disorders Research Center, Research Institute for Gastroenterology and Liver Diseases, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Roya
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kishani Farahani
keywords: Atrophy; Chronic gastritis; Intestinal metaplasia; Staging