Background : The histologic pres­ence of intestinal metaplasia in the esophagus is a prerequisite for the di­agnosis of Barren's esophagus. Short-segment Barren's esophagus is three times more frequent than long-segment Barrett.s esophagus, with simitar risk of dysplasia and adeno-carcinoma. Our objective was to study the clinical and pathophysiologi-cal characteristics of short-segment Barrett's esophagus.
Patients and Methods : Demo­graphic informations, data on tobacco and body mass index were recorded for all patients. Before upper gastroin­testinal endoscopy and esophageal manometry, all patients completed a
validated gastroesophageal reflux dis­ease questionnaire. The diagnosis of short-segment Barrett's esophagus was based on the presence of colum­nar-appearing mucosa in the distal 3cm of the esophagus, with confirma­tion by demonstration of intestinal metaplasia in biopsy specimens.
Results : The studied patients in­cluded group 1 (11 patients having short-segment Barrett's esophagus) and group 2 (29 patients suffering gastroesophageal reflux disease with­out Barrett.s esophagus). In group !, smoking was found in 4 patients, ul-cerogenic drug intake in 4 patients, bad dietary habits in 6 patients and obesity in 5 patients. The relative risk for obesity (1.73), for drugs (1.5)