The Prevalence of Barrett Esophagus Diagnosed in the Second Endoscopy: A Retrospective, Observational Study at a Tertiary Center

At present, we do not know the exact prevalence of Barrett esophagus (BE) developing later in patients without BE in their first endoscopic screening. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of BE on the second endoscopic examination of patients who had no BE in their first endoscopic examination. The data of the patients older than 18 years who had undergone upper gastrointestinal system endoscopy more than once at the endoscopy unit of our clinic during the last 6 years were retrospectively analyzed. During the last 6 years, 44,936 patients had undergone at least one endoscopic examination. Among these patients, 2701 patients who had more than one endoscopic screening were included in the study. Of the patients, 1276 (47.3%) were females and 1425 (52.7%) were males, with an average age of 54.9 (18–94) years. BE was diagnosed in 18 (0.66%) of the patients who had no BE in the initial endoscopic examination. The patients with BE had reflux symptoms in their medical history and in both endoscopies, they revealed a higher prevalence of lower esophageal sphincter laxity, hiatal hernia, and reflux esophagitis when compared to patients without BE (P < 0.001). Our study showed that in patients receiving no diagnosis of BE on their first endoscopic examination performed for any reason, the prevalence of BE on their second endoscopy within 6 years was very low (0.66%).