Differential diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori-associated gastritis with the linked-color imaging score.

BACKGROUND

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection in gastric mucosa is the main risk factor for gastric cancer. The purpose of this study was to assess the value of the linked-color imaging (LCI) score for the identification of H. pylori-associated gastritis.

METHODS

A total of 358 patients were enrolled in the study. H. pylori was positive in 127 cases and negative in 231 cases. Redness of fundus glands, granular erosion, purple mucus (+) and mucus lake turbidity were investigated by the LCI mode of endoscopy. Logistic regression was used to screen the observation indexes and their relative partial regression coefficients, which were helpful for the differential diagnosis of H. pylori infection. Then, each observation index was scored according to the partial regression coefficient.

RESULTS

Using a total scores of 3.5 as the cut-off value, the sensitivity and specificity were 83.8% and 99.5%, respectively, for the differential diagnosis of H. pylori gastritis. The area under the curve was 95.3%.

CONCLUSIONS

The LCI score showed high sensitivity and specificity for the differential diagnosis of H. pylori-associated gastritis and is an effective method for identifying H. pylori infection in gastric mucosa.