The endoscopic and histological features of peptic duodenitis.

This study attempts to compare the endoscopic features of duodenitis with the histological characteristics. During a 12 month period, 98 patients undergoing fibreoptic oesophago-gastro-duodenoscopy had the endoscopic appearances of the duodenum classified on a three point scale of increasing severity of duodenitis. Multiple duodenal biopsies were then taken and the histological features of the severity of duodenitis graded from 0 to 4 plus by an independent observer. The histological criteria included an assessment of neutrophil infiltration, villous bluting, gastric metaplasia and chronic inflammation. Routine endoscopic assessment alone was unsatisfactory for diagnosing and grading the severity of duodenitis and multiple target biopsies are required for histological examinations.