ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the effect of folic acid combined with Helicobacter pylori (Hp) eradication therapy on chronic atrophic gastritis.Methods From December 2009 to March 2011 at the First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University,184 patients with endoscopic and pathological diagnosis of chronic atrophic gastritis (90 Hp positive and 94 Hp negative) were selected.Hp positive patients were divided into group A and group B.Forty-three patients in group A were treated with standard triple Hp eradication therapy and follow by folic acid therapy for three months.Forty-seven patients in group B and Hp negative patients received three months of folic acid therapy.The clinical symptoms of each group were scored before treatment,one month after folie acid therapy and three months after folic acid therapy and analyzed by t test. Patients of each group received gastroscopy before treatment and three months after medicine withdrawal. Endoscopic scores,pathological scores and t test were recorded.The serum levels of pepsinogen ( Ⅰ,Ⅱ ) and gastrin 17 in venous blood of 55 Hp negative patients were detected by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method before treatment and three months after medicine withdrawal.Results Compared with three months therapy (1.15 ± 0.03),after one month folic acid therapy (1.55 ± 0.04) was statistically significant in clinical symptoms score of all patients (t =8.18,P＜0.01).By the end of therapy,clinical symptom score of group A (1.06 ± 0.04) was lower than that of group B (1.56 ±0.08),and the difference was significant (t=6.00,P＜0.01).There was significant difference in endoscopic scores of all patients between before treatment (1.57±0.95) and after treatment (1.00±0.76,t=11.12,P＜0.01).The differences in each pathological score of all patients (inflammatory scoring,active scoring,atrophy scoring,intestinal metaplasia scoring,atypical hyperplasia degree scoring) were significant between before treatment and after treatment (t=5.51,6.90,7.53,6.34,2.90,respectively,all P＜0.01).The serum level of pepsinogen Ⅰ before treatment of 55 Hp negative patients [(1.03±0.19) nmol/L] was lower than that after treatment [(2.24±0.33) nmol/L],and the difference was statistically significant (t=3.19,P＜0.01).After treatment the level of gastrin 17 [(0.86±0.05) nmol/L] was higher than that before treatment [(0.47±0.05) nmol/L],and the difference was statistically significant ( t =5.33,P＜ 0.01 ).Conclusion Folic acid in combination with Hp eradication therapy can be favorable to atrophic gastritis,which may promote the secretion of pepsinogen and gastrin.