Prevalence of Helicobacter pylori in Patients With Brucellosis

• Published in: Journal of investigative medicine Vol. 60; no. 6; pp. 895 - 897
• Main Authors: Esen, Ramazan, Dulger, Ahmet Cumhur, Begenik, Huseyin, Demirtas, Levent, Ebinc, Senar, Aytemiz, Enver, Sunnetcioglu, Mahmut, Aslan, Mehmet
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01-08-2012; Sage Publications Ltd
• Subjects: Brucellosis - blood; Brucellosis - complications; Brucellosis - epidemiology; Brucellosis - microbiology; Demography; Female; Helicobacter Infections - blood; Helicobacter Infections - complications; Helicobacter Infections - epidemiology; Helicobacter Infections - microbiology; Helicobacter pylori - physiology; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Prevalence; Turkey - epidemiology; Turkey; prevalence; Turkey; Helicobacter pylori; IgG antibody; brucellosis
• ISSN: 1081-5589; 1708-8267
• DOI: 10.2310/JIM.0b013e31825bccc2

Background Helicobacter pylori infection affects approximately 40 million individuals in Turkey. Our prefecture is an endemic area for H. pylori infection and brucellosis. However, there are no data on the H. pylori prevalence among patients with brucellosis.ObjectivesThe primary aim of the current study was to investigate the link between H. pylori infection and brucellosis. The secondary aim was to determine the seroprevalence of H. pylori infection in healthy individuals.MethodsBetween May 2010 and May 2011, serum was collected from patients with Brucella infection (n = 111) and healthy individuals (n = 120) and analyzed using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit. Brucella infection was defined as a positive Wright test or blood culture positivity for Brucella in conjunction with disease symptoms and findings.ResultsAmong the 111 patients with brucellosis, 69% (n = 77) had a seropositivity result for H. pylori IgG. The healthy control subjects had an 87% (n = 104) seropositivity for H. pylori IgG. The serum H. pylori IgG antibody seropositivity was significantly lower in the patients with Brucella infection compared with the control subjects (P < 0.001).ConclusionOur results show that the serum prevalence of H. pylori among the patients infected with brucellosis is significantly lower than that in the control population. A negative correlation between H. pylori infection and brucellosis infection might be hypothesized.