Gastropathie atrophique: dépistage de masse et surveillance des sujets «à risque élevé»

Considering the role of precancerosis played by atrophic gastritis and the high value of its incidence in people in the 40 to 60 age group, the authors wished to report the results of a mass screening undertaken on carriers of this affection and of the organisation of a follow-up programme and especially of patients carrying atrophic gastritis with intestinal metaplasia, a defined high-risk situation. It is to this end that the determination of the fasting serum gastrin was first of all used. This was followed in presence of greater values than as normal, by basal gastroacidogram and after histamine stimulation and gastroscopy with multiple biopsies for a histological, immunological and enzymological examination. The determination of lactatodehydrogenas, more especially, showed itself very valid in screening, at an initial stage, the malignant transformation of an atrophic gastritis with a high degree of intestinal metaplasia.