The prevalence of anti-Helicobacter (Campylobacter) pylori antibodies in patients and healthy blood donors

• Published in: Journal of medical microbiology Vol. 32; no. 2; pp. 105 - 109
• Main Authors: Loffeld, R. J. L. F, Stobberingh, E, Van Spreeuwel, J. P, Flendrig, J. A, Arends, J. W
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Reading Soc General Microbiol 01-06-1990; Society for General Microbiology
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Antibodies, Bacterial - analysis; Bacteriology; Biological and medical sciences; Blood Donors; Campylobacter - immunology; Campylobacter Infections - epidemiology; Child; Child, Preschool; Cohort Studies; Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; Epidemiology; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Humans; Male; Microbiology; Middle Aged; Predictive Value of Tests; Prevalence; Human; Immune response; Spirillales; Antibody; Spirillaceae; Epidemiology; Infection; Bacteriosis; Bacteria; Digestive diseases; Serum; Detection; ELISA assay; Humoral immunity; Campylobacter; Blood donor
• ISSN: 0022-2615; 1473-5644
• DOI: 10.1099/00222615-32-2-105

Departments of Internal Medicine, University Hospital Maastricht, PO Box 1918, 6201 BX Maastricht, The Netherlands
* Microbiology, University Hospital Maastricht, PO Box 1918, 6201 BX Maastricht, The Netherlands
Pathology, University Hospital Maastricht, PO Box 1918, 6201 BX Maastricht, The Netherlands
Department of Internal Medicine, Catharina Ziekenhuis Eindhoven.
Received June 12, 1989
Revision received November 23, 1989.
An enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) with a sonicated suspension of Helicobacter (Campylobacter) pylori as antigen was used to detect anti- H. pylori antibodies in 517 patients without dyspepsia or peptic ulcer symptoms and 401 healthy blood donors. The criterion of seropositivity was determined from a receiver operating curve computed with the values of optical densities of 48 sera from dyspeptic patients with proven helicobacter-associated gastritis and 16 sera from dyspeptic patients with proven helicobacter-associated gastritis and 16 sera from dyspeptic patients with normal antral mucosa and no microbiological or histological evidence of H. pylori infection. The 227 (44%) seropositive persons amongst the patient group appeared to be significantly higher than the 142 (35%) sera with antibodies in the blood donors tested (p<<0.03), even when adjustment was made for increasing age. We conclude that the prevalence of antibodies against H. pylori increases with age and that although antibodies are more prevalent in patients attending a hospital than in healthy blood donors, seropositivity suggestive of current or past infection can be found in one third of a randomly chosen population of blood donors.