Family history of gastric disease: a risk factor for intestinal metaplasia--a gastric precancerous lesion. ECP-EURONUT-Intestinal Metaplasia Study Group, UK Sub-Group

Abstract

As part of a large study of the aetiology of intestinal metaplasia (IM) a questionnaire on family history was administered to patients with IM, symptomatic (and therefore endoscoped) controls (EC) and non-symptomatic (and therefore not endoscoped) controls (NC). A larger proportion of NC (47%) than of EC (23%) or IM cases (25%) had an absence of family history of gastroduodenal disease. IM cases had a stronger family history than did either control group.