The Utility of Endoscopic Biopsies in Patients with Normal Upper Endoscopy

Table 1

Patient demographics and indication for EGD for patients with macroscopically normal and abnormal EGDs.

Demographic; (mean, percentage, or number)	Normal EGD	Abnormal EGD
Age (years)	44	57
Sex (%)	Male: 32%	Male: 49%
	Female: 68%	Female: 51%
ASA/NSAID (%)	14%	26%
Anticoagulation (%)	3%	7%
PPI (%)	47%	49%
H2RA (%)	2%	2%
EGD indication
Dyspepsia	554 (43%)	721 (25%)
Heartburn	164 (13%)	344 (12%)
Anemia	163 (12%)	336 (11%)
Diarrhea	91 (7%)	88 (3%)
Nausea/vomiting	88 (7%)	136 (5%)
Dysphagia	65 (5%)	368 (12%)
GI bleed	35 (3%)	264 (9%)
Chest pain	20 (2%)	27 (1%)
Weight loss	17 (1%)	44 (2%)
Other	100 (8%)	595 (20%)

EGD = upper endoscopy, ASA = aspirin, NSAID = nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, PPI = proton pump inhibitor, H2RA = H2 receptor antagonist, and GI = gastrointestinal.
Other indications: odynophagia, halitosis, hiccups, globus, screening or surveillance for malignancy, radiologic abnormalities, food bolus, chronic cough, or research study.