Background: Lymphocytic gastritis is a histological entity characterized by intense lympocytic infiltration (> 25 lymphocytes/100 epithelial cells) in the gastric surface and pit epithelium. Its cause has not been established, but an association with H Pylori infection or celiac disease has been suggested.

Aims: To evaluate the number of intraepithelial lymphocytes (IELs) in gastric mucosa of children with celiac disease and to study the presence of H Pylori infection in these patients.

Material and Methods:This prospective study included 147 children with celiac disease (M:F, 1:0,. 7; mean age 8.1 years) diagnosed between June 6, 2003 and August 25, 2005 in whom gastric and duodenal biopsy was taken simultaneously. The control consisted of 147 non-celiac children matched for sex and age (within on year) without any peptic ulcer gastric resection or malignancy in whom upper digestive endoscopy was performed. H Pylori were recognized in gastric biopsy on H&E sections; a Modified Giemsa stain was performed in biopsy suspicious for H pylori.

Results:Lymphocytic gastritis was found in 61 celiac patients. Positive cases had a mean of 42.6 IELs/100 surface epithelial cells, compared with a mean of 13.2 in negative cases, and 7.6 in non-celiac controls. Cases not showing lymphocytic gastritis did however show significantly increased gastric intraepithelial lymphocytes compared with non-celiac controls (p <0.0001). Nine of 147 cases were positive for H pylori, and 4 of 61 cases of lymphocytic gastritis were H pylori positive.

Conclusions:Lymphocytic gastritis occurred in 41.5% of children with celiac disease. A celiac disease without lymphocytic gastritis also showed increased gastric intraepithelial lymphocytes. The other cause of lymphocytic gastritis may be H pylori infection in children.

Pedgastro 2005 - Conference Abstracts.Pediatric Oncall [serial online] 2006 [cited 15 March 2006(Supplement 3)];3. Available from:
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Lymphocytic_gastritis_celiac_disease.asp