Lack of Association Found between Helicobacter pylori Infection and Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome: A Multicenter Retrospective Study

Aims. The association between Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection and diarrhea-predominant irritable bowel syndrome (IBS-D) is still controversial. Here we performed a retrospective study to explore this issue. Methods. A total of 502 inpatients with Rome III confirmed IBS-D and known H. pylori status from 8 hospitals were enrolled. H. pylori-positive patients, hospitalized in the recent year, were followed up to evaluate the effects of H. pylori eradication on IBS-D clinical course. Results. Of the 502 IBS-D patients, 206 were H. pylori-positive, with an infection rate that has no significant difference with that of the general population in Guangdong province (p = 0.348). For patients followed up, no significant differences were noted as to overall symptoms (p = 0.562), abdominal pain/discomfort (p = 0.777), bloating (p = 0.736), stool frequency (p = 0.835), or stool characteristics (p = 0.928) between the H. pylori-eradicated group and the control group. The results were the same in long-term follow-up patients except the improvement of bloating, which showed that the bloating score in the H. pylori-eradicated group was significantly lower (p = 0.047). Conclusions. No significant correlation between H. pylori infection and IBS-D was noted. Overall, IBS-D patients may not benefit from H. pylori eradication.