Collagenous Gastritis: Characteristics and Response to Topical Budesonide

Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2022 Sep;20(9):1977-1985.e1. doi: 10.1016/j.cgh.2021.11.033. Epub 2021 Dec 2.

Abstract

Background and aims: Collagenous gastritis (CG) is a rare disorder characterized by subepithelial collagen deposition in the stomach. Standard medications have been only moderately successful in treating CG. We report results of a large, retrospective, open-label noncontrolled study of topical budesonide for CG, with an aim of establishing an alternative therapy for the disease.

Methods: We identified patients treated for CG at Mayo Clinic (2000-2017) with topically targeted budesonide (TTB) in 2 formulations: open-capsule budesonide or compounded immediate-release budesonide capsule. Demographic, clinical, biochemical, and histologic variables were assessed for all patients before and after treatment.

Results: We identified 64 patients with CG (50 adults, 14 children). Most were female (68%), mean age was 41 ± 22.8 years, and body mass index was 23.1 ± 5.9 kg/m2. In most pediatric patients, CG presented with abdominal pain and anemia; in adults, CG presented more often with weight loss (P < .001). Collagenous sprue or colitis were more common in patients >50 years of age (83%) vs those 19-50 years of age (27%) or <19 years of age (50%) (P < .001). Of the patients treated with TTB, 89% had a clinical response to TTB (42% complete, 46% partial), and 88% had a histologic response (53% complete, 33% partial).

Conclusions: Adults and children with CG have a wide variety of symptoms, and notably, TTB therapy produced clinical and histologic improvement after other therapy had failed.

Keywords: Budesonide; Collagenous Gastritis; Corticosteroids.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Budesonide
  • Child
  • Collagen
  • Female
  • Gastritis*
  • Humans
  • Malabsorption Syndromes*
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • Budesonide
  • Collagen