Question: There are a number of methods available for measuring quality of life. Why can we not have one method to analyse quality of life that is used worldwide?

Dr Veldhuyzen van Zanten: That would be ideal but unlikely to happen as several different methodologies can be used. In functional dyspepsia, a lot of progress has been made. I am aware that several groups are further refining their outcome measures, and I believe that improvement over the current symptom scores is still possible. The questionnaires are not very lengthy to administer, so we could look at a whole battery of tests and see which one performs best. Compared with five years ago, investigators now have a choice of instruments to use, but there is no consensus at the moment on which ones are the best.

Question: Is six or 12 months a sufficient period of observation? Suppose that when you inflame the mucosa, you induce a prolonged neuropathophysiological change. It might then take years for abnormalities to return to normal. Should we not follow up these patients for much longer to assess the final outcome?

Professor Bazzoli: Assessing patients for one year is, I believe, an achievement. Until recently, results were assessed usually after only four weeks. The new studies suggest that there is probably a role for inflammation. Most scientists would say that gastritis can heal within a year, but the mechanism is not known, so we can also argue that it will take more time to heal the gastritis than it does to improve the symptoms. We therefore need to identify the pathophysiological mechanisms.

Professor Tytgat: I would suggest that we continue to look at the data long term, as it is an important area.

Dr Veldhuyzen van Zanten: In my opinion, if you do not see an …