Gastric heterotopia in rectum: A literature review and its diagnostic pitfall

OBJECTIVES: The term heterotopia, in pathology, refers to the presence of normal tissues at foreign sites. Gastric heterotopia has been reported anywhere in the gastrointestinal tract. However, the presence of gastric heterotopia in the rectum is very rare. METHODS: We, here, report a rare case of a localized 2-cm area of cratered mucosa with heaped-up borders in the rectum of a 51-year-old, asymptomatic woman who underwent screening colonoscopy. RESULTS: Histologic examination of the biopsy from the lesional tissue in rectum demonstrated fragments of rectal mucosa co-mingling with oxyntic- and antral-type gastric mucosa. No intestinal metaplasia or Helicobacter pylori is identified. CONCLUSION: Patients with gastric heterotopia in rectum usually present with bleeding and/or abdominal pain. Definite treatment of choice is surgical or endoscopic resection, although the lesions also respond to histamine-2 receptor blockers. In this article, most recent literature about gastric heterotopia in rectum is reviewed, following a case presentation about it.