Fig. 4.

An assessment using Pearson correlation between the tight junction (TJ) protein immunohistochemical (IHC) staining grades and the FSSG scores in 80 patients who underwent endoscopies. There were no significant correlations between symptoms and IHC staining grades for any TJ proteins (IHC staining was graded as follows: claudin-1 and -4: grade 1, <30%; grade 2, 30%–50%; grade 3, >50%; occludin and ZO-1: grade 1, <50%; grade 2, 50%–70%; grade 3, >70%).

FSSG, frequency scale for the symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease; NS, not significant; ZO-1, zonula occludin-1.