Seroprevalence and trend of Helicobacter pylori infection in Gondar University Hospital among dyspeptic patients, Gondar, North West Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: The growing attention given to H. pylori is not surprising since this pathogen colonizes more than at least half of the world’s inhabitants. In Ethiopia particularly in Gondar, there is no current study conducted about seroprevalence and trend of the prevalence of H. pylori. Therefore the aim of this study was to determine the seroprevalence and its trend of the H. pylori in three consecutive years in North Gondar, North West Ethiopia. FINDINGS: Retrospective study was conducted using data collected from log book of serology laboratory of Gondar University Hospital. We collected data from January 2009 to December 2011 and 1388 subjects were included whose data were registered completely. Among all of the study subjects, 912 (65.7%) were found to be seropositive. The prevalence in male was 449/679 (66.1%) and in females it was 463/709 (65.3%). The prevalence of H.pylori infection was significantly higher (77.0%) in patients whose age is greater than 60 years and the lowest positive age group was between 0–20 in which only 59.1% were positive (X(2) =14.15,p=0.0146). The seroprevalence was 86.5% in 2009 and it decreased to 51.8% in 2010. But the seroprevalence increased to 61.3% in 2011. CONCLUSION: This study showed high seroprevalence of H .pylori among the dyspeptic patients in GUH. The trend of the seroprevalence was varied from year to year in the three consecutive years. In general it showed that the seroprevalence has started increasing.