Prevalence of Helicobacter Pylori Infection in School and Pre-School Aged Children with C-14 Urea Breath Test and the Association with Familial and Environmental Factors

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection in pre-school and school age children with C-14 urea breath test, and to explore its association with age and socioeconomic factors in Turkey. METHODS: Hp infection status was determined by using Urea Breath Test (UBT). Patients who had previous gastric surgery, Hp eradication treatment or equivocal UBT results were excluded. A questionnaire was administered to elicit information on gender, age, ABO/Rh blood group type, presence of gastric disease in the family, domestic animal in the household, and treatment for idiopathic Iron Deficiency Anemia (IDA). RESULTS: This retrospective study included 500 pediatric patients (179 boys, 321 girls, mean age 10.7±4.3 years) of whom 62 (12.4%) were aged ≤6 years and 438 (87.6%) were aged 7 to 16 years. Helicobacter pylori (Hp) was positive in 245 (49%) cases. In the pre-school age group, 21/62 cases (34%) had positive UBT while in the school age group 224/438 children (51%) had positive UBT. A family history of dyspepsia and pet ownership were not associated with Hp positivity. Hp positive 76 (29.8%) children were on IDA treatment but this was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: The Hp infection positivity rate was 49% in the pediatric age study group. The positivity rate was significantly lower at preschool age than school age, and it increased with age. There was no association with gender, ABO/Rh blood groups, presence of domestic pets, IDA, or history of gastric disease in the family.