Atrophy, metaplasia and dysplasia: are they reversible?

The eradication of Helicobacter pylori results in the decrease and eventual disappearance of inflammation in the gastric mucosa. An important question with practical implications is whether treatment of H. pylori can promote the resolution of atrophy and intestinal metaplasia. If this happens, then one could infer that even in the presence of established multifocal atrophic gastritis the cure of Helicobacter pylori could reduce the risk of developing gastric cancer. Several investigators have addressed the issue, but the cumulative results remain inconclusive. The great latitude that there exists in the interpretation of the concept of atrophy and the patchy distribution of both atrophic changes and intestinal metaplasia (with resulting inevitable sampling error) are important reasons for the wide discrepancy in the conclusions reached by different authors. Controlled, long-term prospective studies conducted in different ethnic and geographic settings are needed to provide sound evidence-based answers to the question of reversibility of atrophy, intestinal metaplasia, and epithelial dysplasia.