Aim. To study the prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms and lesions of the esophageal mucosa in residents of Zabaikalsky krai, taking into account ethnicity.
Methods. The first stage: 371 residents of Zabaikalsky krai over 18 years old, were door-to-door interviewed by using the GERD questionnaire (GerdQ). The respondents with 8 or more points were classified as having GERD symptoms. Additionally, we collected passport data, smoking status, alcohol and coffee consumption, anthropometric data and social status. The second stage: we analyzed 2130 upper gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy reports from Regional Clinical Hospital in Chita.
Results. 48 (12.9%) of 371 respondents had GERD symptoms. 135 (36.4%) respondents were Buryats, and 236 (63.6%) were non-Buryats, with the latter more often had GerdQ total score of 8 or more [38 (16.1%) non-Buryats and 10 (7.4%) Buryats, p=0.009]. The average age of non-Buryats respondents with GERD symptoms was 53.417.47 years and exceeded that in the group without symptoms (46.219.2 years), p=0.035. The age of Buryats with and without GERD symptoms did not differ (42.6711.52 and 37.8915.54 years, respectively, р=0.087). The prevalence of obesity, smoking, alcohol and coffee consumption of respondents with and without GERD symptoms, both among Buryats and non-Buryats was the same. Of the 2130 patients who underwent endoscopy, 164 (7.8%) had morphological changes in the esophagus, 105 (4.9%) had erosive esophagitis (EE). Catarrhal and erosive changes in the esophagus were detected in 156 non-Buryats (91 men and 66 women) (7.7%), while EE was diagnosed in 97 (4.8%) patients. 6.5% (5 women and 3 men) Buryats had the esophagus pathology, which caused by erosion. It was found that in non-Buryats group EE develop more often in male respondents (p=0.0019). Only non-Buryats had catarrhal changes in the esophagus (37.8%, 59 people), p=0.0312. At the same time, the incidence of complicated disease course in groups with EE was the same (p=0.8934).
Conclusion. About 13% of residents of Zabaikalsky krai have weekly symptoms of GERD, male of a non-Buryat ethnic group are more likely to develop erosive esophagitis than women; the incidence of complications of esophagitis is the same in Buryats and non-Buryats respondents groups.