Tobacco smoking and intestinal metaplasia: Systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

The evaluation of specific risk factors for early endpoints in the gastric carcinogenesis pathway may further contribute to the understanding of gastric cancer aetiology.

Aims

To quantify the relation between smoking and intestinal metaplasia through systematic review and meta-analysis.

Methods

Articles providing data on the association between smoking and intestinal metaplasia were identified in PubMed^®, Scopus^® and Web of Science™, searched until April 2014, and through backward citation tracking. Summary odds ratio estimates and 95% confidence intervals were computed using the DerSimonian and Laird method. Heterogeneity was quantitatively assessed using the I² statistic.

Results

A total of 32 articles were included in this systematic review and 19 provided data for meta-analysis. Smoking was defined as ever vs. never (crude estimates, six studies, summary odds ratio = 1.54, 95% confidence interval: 1.12–2.12, I² = 67.4%; adjusted estimates, seven studies, summary odds ratio = 1.26, 95% confidence interval: 0.98–1.61, I² = 65.0%) and current vs. non-smokers (crude estimates, seven studies, summary odds ratio = 1.27, 95% confidence interval: 0.88–1.84, I² = 73.4%; adjusted estimates, two studies, summary odds ratio 1.49, 95% confidence interval: 0.99–2.25, I² = 0.0%).

Conclusion

The weak and non-statistically significant association found through meta-analysis of the available evidence does not confirm smoking as an independent risk factor for intestinal metaplasia.