Risk Factors of Peptic Ulcer Disease in Khorramabad city, Southwest of Iran : A Case Control Study

Abstract

Background & Aims: The aim of this study is to determine the demographic characteristics, endoscopic findings, morphological and pathological characteristics of the ulcer in patients with peptic ulcer disease, and also to compare the odds ratio of exposure to possible risk factors of disease in patients with peptic ulcer disease and a healthy control group in Khorramabad city. Materials & Methods: In the present case-control research, all the patients who had referred to a digestive tract sub-specialist's office in Khorramabad in 2015 and had been diagnosed with peptic ulcer disease via endoscopy and pathological studies were enrolled in the study. The control group were selected from among those referring to the ophthalmological and dermatological clinics of the Shahid Rahimi Hospital. The data collection instrument used in this study was a questionnaire that included items related to the demographic information of the patients, and also questions regarding the patient's background as to smoking, alcohol consumption, NSAIDs or corticosteroids usage, and peptic ulcer disease among first-degree relatives. The same data were collected from the members of the control group. All patients signed written consent forms regarding their participation in the study. The data were analyzed using SPSS software. Findings: In the present study, 60 patients with PU and 60 subjects as the control group were examined. Most patients were between 30 and 44 years old (60%). In the present study, the mean age of patients with PUD was 35 +/- 10.6 years. Among all patients with PUD, three (5%) had gastric ulcer and 57 (95%) had duodenal ulcer. Anatomical location of all ulcers (3 cases) was in the small curvature of stomach and 47.4% of duodenal ulcers were in the anterior wall. In multivariate analysis, which was performed using logistic regression, there was a statistically significant relationship among history of NSAID use (PV = 0.047) and smoking history (PV = 0.042) with occurrence of PUD. Conclusion: In general, peptic ulcer is considered as a common and serious problem all around the world and 5 to 10% of the population are affected by PU during their life. Therefore, the incidence and complications of this disease can be significantly prevented by correcting risk factors and lifestyle, as well as by improving the health conditions of the community.