Has Peptic Ulcer Disease Changed During the Past Ten Years in Korea? A Prospective Multi-center Study

Background The incidence of H. pylori -negative, idiopathic peptic ulcer disease (IPUD) seems to be increasing with the changing trends of PUD and H. pylori infection in some developed countries. Aim To investigate the changing trend of PUD and the prevalence of H. pylori infection during the last decade and the prevalence of IPUD in Korea. Methods We prospectively evaluated H. pylori infection and the characteristics of PUD in 895 patients with newly diagnosed PUD from September 2004 to February 2005. Results The H. pylori infection rate in PUD was 72.0% and the proportion of IPUD was 22.2%. The proportion of gastric ulcer (GU) has significantly increased (47.8% vs. 44.3%) and the proportion of duodenal ulcer (DU) has significantly decreased (38.9% vs. 44.9%) compared with ten years ago. The changing trend in the prevalence of H. pylori infection in GU and DU showed an increase in GU (66.1% vs. 73.1%, P = 0.014) and a decrease in DU (79.3% vs. 68.1%, P = 0.001). Conclusion Compared with our results of ten years ago, there has been a significant change in the distribution of PUD and in the prevalence of H. pylori infection in GU and DU. Patients with IPUD are not uncommon in Korea.