Objective: The term heterotopia, a term derived from Greek, implies "other place." It refers to the finding of normal tissues at foreign sites. Heterotopic gastric tissue rarely involves the large bowel. We report 2 cases of this rare entity.
Data sources: Case reports of 2 patients with sessile polypoid lesion in the rectum, with a review of the available literature, using both MEDLINE and relevant bibliographies of published articles.
Results: Biopsies of the rectal lesions in our 2 cases revealed the presence of gastric tissue. Only 27 other such cases have been reported in the English literature.
Conclusions: Patients with rectal gastric heterotopia usually present with bleeding, but other presentations and complications are possible. Endoscopic or surgical excision is the treatment of choice, although the lesions also respond to histamine 2 receptor blockers.