Changing trends in upper gastrointestinal endoscopic findings in Ethiopia: A comparison of eighteen thousand exams across two periods

Table 1 Age and sex distribution of attendees of endoscopy services at Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital, Ethiopia, n (%)

1979-1994[15]					2016-2024
Age	Male	Female	Total	Percent	Male	Female	Total	Percent
< 211	517	502	1019	10.2	327	229	556	8.7
21-30	1753	1200	2953	29.5	840	507	1347	21.0
31-40	1994	858	2852	28.5	666	534	1200	18.7
41-50	1243	477	1720	17.2	613	619	2132	19.2
51-60	633	304	937	9.4	603	519	1122	17.5
61-70	296	105	401	4.0	412	271	683	10.6
> 702	73	45	118	1.2	187	100	287	4.5
Total	6509 (65)	3491 (35)	10000	100	3648 (57)	2779 (43)	6427	100

¹Details are not available for 1979-1994, 554 patients in age group 11-20, one 10 years and one 3 years old for 2016-2024.

²Details are not available for 1979-1994, 246 in age group 71-80, 38 in age group 81-90,3 patients 91-100 for 2016-2024.

Table 2 Common endoscopic findings among Ethiopian patients (1979-1994 and 2016-2024), n (%)

Endoscopic findings	1979-1994 (corrected n = 9441)[15]				2016-2024 (corrected n = 6427)
	Male	Female	Total	Percent	Male	Female	Total	Percent
Ulcer diseases (DU + GU)	2377	741	3118	33.0	328	147	475	7.4
Duodenal luminal deformity (scar) and pyloric stenosis	908	322	1230	13.0	102	36	138	2.1
Gastroduodenitis1	635	338	973	10.3	483	424	907	14.1
Gastroesophageal varices	632	269	901	9.5	977	427	1404	21.8
Gastric mass lesion	160	98	258	2.7	284	207	491	7.6
Esophagitis	152	81	233	2.5	166	151	317	5.0
Esophageal mass lesion	52	34	86	0.9	335	385	720	11.2
Hiatal hernia	78	14	92	1.0	102	108	210	3.3
Achalasia	31	19	50	0.5	55	35	90	1.4
stricture	19	8	27	0.3	107	111	218	3.4
Miscellaneous (others)	146	75	221	2.3	202	177	379	6.0
Normal	1210	1042	2252	24.0	460	539	999	115.5
Total	6400	3041	9441	100	3648	2779	6427	100

¹Gastropathy in 2016-2024 cohort.

DU: Duodenal ulcer; GU: Gastric ulcer.

Table 3 Comparison of Endoscopic Findings with Statistical Significance (P values), n (%)

Diagnosis	Prevalence 1979-1994	Prevalence 2016-2024	P value
Esophageal mass lesion	86/9441 (0.9)	720/6427 (11.2)	0.0000
Ulcer diseases (DU + GU)	3118/9441 (33.0)	475/6427 (7.4)	0.0000
Gastroesophageal varices	901/9441 (9.5)	1404/6427 (21.8)	0.0000
Gastric mass lesion	258/9441 (2.7)	491/6427 (7.6)	0.0000
Hiatal hernia	92/9441 (1.0)	210/6427 (3.3)	0.0000
Achalasia	50/9441 (0.5)	90/6427 (1.4)	0.0000
Stricture	27/9441 (0.3)	218/6427 (3.4)	0.0000
Miscellaneous (others)	221/9441 (2.3)	379/6427 (5.9)	0.0000
Normal	2252/9441 (23.9)	999/6427 (15.5)	0.0000

DU: Duodenal ulcer; GU: Gastric ulcer.