Seroprevalence of Helicobacter pylori in Hispanics living in Puerto Rico: A population‐based study

Background

Helicobacter pylori is an important etiologic factor for peptic ulcers and gastric cancer, one of the top ten leading causes of cancer death in Puerto Rico. However, the prevalence of H. pylori infections in this population was previously unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the seroprevalence of H. pylori and its associated risk factors in Puerto Rico.

Materials and Methods

A cross‐sectional study was designed using an existing population‐based biorepository. Seropositivity was determined using the Premier^? H. pylori immunoassay. Helicobacter pylori seroprevalence was estimated with 95% confidence using marginal standardization following logistic regression. To assess the risk factors associated with H. pylori seropositivity, a multivariable log‐binomial model was fitted to estimate the prevalence ratio (PR) and its 95% confidence interval (95% CI).

Results

A total of 528 population‐based serum samples were analyzed. The mean age of the study population was 41 ± 12 years, of whom 55.3% were females. The overall seroprevalence of H. pylori was 33.0% (95% CI = 28.3%‐38.1%). Increasing age and having <12 years of education were significantly (P < .05) associated with H. pylori seropositivity in the multivariable model; however, residing in counties with low population density reached marginal significance (P = .085).

Conclusions

We report that H. pylori infection is common among Hispanics living in Puerto Rico. The H. pylori seroprevalence observed in Puerto Rico is similar to the seroprevalence reported in the overall population of the United States. The association between H. pylori seroprevalence and the risk factors analyzed offers insight into the epidemiology of gastric cancer in Puerto Rico and warrants further investigation.

     

Helicobacter pylori Seroprevalence in Symptomatic Veterans: A Study of 7310 Patients Over 11 Years

Background and Aims:  The prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection has been decreasing in the USA, but recent data are lacking. This study evaluates the seroprevalence for anti- H. pylori antibodies in symptomatic veterans tested over the past 11 years.
Materials and Methods:  The same serum anti- H. pylori IgG detection system has been used at a tertiary care Veterans Affairs hospital since late 1996. Results of all tests performed from 1997 to 2007 were analyzed.
Results:  Of 7310 unique patients tested, 3982 (54.5%) were positive. Seropositivity declined from 70.8% in 1997 to 48.6% in 2002, then reached a plateau around 50%. A strong birth cohort effect was present, from a seropositivity of 72.7% for the veterans born before 1920 to 22% for those born between after 1980.
Conclusions:  Despite a constant birth cohort effect, H. pylori seropositivity among symptomatic veterans leveled down at ~50% after declining steadily from 1997 to 2002.     

Seroprevalence of Helicobacter pylori in Korea: A multicenter,nationwide study conducted in 2015 and 2016

Background

The Korean College of Helicobacter and Upper Gastrointestinal Research has studied Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) prevalence since 1998 and found a dynamic change in its prevalence in Korea. The aim of this study was to determine the recent H. pylori prevalence rate and compare it with that of previous studies according to socioeconomic variables.

Methods

We planned to enroll 4920 asymptomatic Korean adults from 21 centers according to the population distribution of seven geographic areas (Seoul, Gyeonggi, Gangwon, Chungcheong, Kyungsang, Cholla, and Jeju). We centrally collected serum and tested H. pylori serum IgG using a chemiluminescent enzyme immunoassay.

Results

We analyzed 4917 samples (4917/4920 = 99.9%) from January 2015 to December 2016. After excluding equivocal serologic results, the H. pylori seropositivity rate was 51.0% (2414/4734). We verified a decrease in H. pylori seroprevalence compared with previous studies performed in 1998, 2005, and 2011 (P < .0001). The H. pylori seroprevalence rate differed by area: Cholla (59.5%), Chungcheong (59.2%), Kyungsang (55.1%), Jeju (54.4%), Gangwon (49.1%), Seoul (47.4%), and Gyeonggi (44.6%). The rate was higher in those older than 40 years (38.1% in those aged 30‐39 years and 57.7% in those aged 40‐49 years) and was lower in city residents than in noncity residents at all ages.

Conclusions

Helicobacter pylori seroprevalence in Korea is decreasing and may vary according to population characteristics. This trend should be considered to inform H. pylori‐related policies.     

Handbook of Spatial Statistics edited by GELFAND,A. E., DIGGLE,P. J., FUENTES,M. and GUTTORP,P.

Handbook of Spatial Statistics (A. E. Gelfand, P. J. Diggle, M. Fuentes, and P. Guttorp, Editors) Daniel Commenges Computational Statistics (J. E. Gentle) Thomas Lumley Bayesian Missing Data Problems: EM, Data Augmentation and Noniterative Computation (M. T. Tan, G.‐L. Tian, and K. W. Ng) Alessandra Mattei A First Course in Bayesian Statistical Methods (P. D. Hoff) Dalene Stangl Environmental and Ecological Statistics with R (S. S. Qian) Andrew Finley A Modern Approach to Regression with R (S. J. Sheather) Mervyn G. Marasinghe Exercises and Solutions in Biostatistical Theory (L. L. Kupper, B. H. Neelon, and S. M. O’Brien) Scott S. Emerson ggplot2 : Elegant Graphics for Data Analysis (H. Wickham) Leland Wilkinson     

ERRATUM: Beall CM,Brittenham GM,Strohl KP,Blangero J,Williams-Blangero S,Goldstein MC,Decker MJ,Vargas E,Villena M,Soria R,Alarcon AM,and Gonzales C (1998) Hemoglobin Concentration of High-altitude Tibetans and Bolivian Aymara. Am. J. Phys. Anthropol. 106:385–400.

Figures 1A and B were switched with Figures 3A and B. The Figures on pages 390 and 391 plotting hemoglobin concentration against percent of oxygen saturation of arterial hemoglobin are Figures 3A and B rather than Figures 1A and B as printed. The Figures on pages 394 and 395 plotting hemoglobin concentration against age are Figures 1A and B rather than Figures 3A and B as printed.     

Lipopolysaccharide structures of Helicobacter pylori genomic strains 26695 and J99, mouse model H. pylori Sydney strain, H. pylori P466 carrying sialyl Lewis X, and H. pylori UA915 expressing Lewis B classification of H. pylori lipopolysaccharides into glycotype families.

This study describes the molecular makeup of the cell-wall lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) (O-chain polysaccharide-->core oligosaccharide-->lipid A) from five Helicobacter pylori strains: H. pylori 26695 and J99, the complete genome sequences of which have been published, the established mouse model Sydney strain (SS1), and the symptomatic strains P466 and UA915. All chemical and serological experiments were performed on the intact LPSs. H. pylori 26695 and SS1 possessed either a low-Mr semi-rough-form LPS carrying mostly a single Ley type-2 blood-group determinant in the O-chain region covalently attached to the core oligosaccharide or a high-Mr smooth-form LPS, as did strain J99, with an elongated partially fucosylated type-2 N-acetyllactosamine (polyLacNAc) O-chain polymer, terminated mainly by a Lex blood-group determinant, connected to the core oligosaccharide. In the midst of semi-rough-form LPS glycoforms, H. pylori 26695 and SS1 also expressed in the O-chain region a difucosylated antigen, alpha-L-Fucp(1-3)-alpha-L-Fucp(1-4)-beta-D-GlcpNAc, and the cancer-cell-related type-1 or type-2 linear B-blood-group antigen, alpha-D-Galp(1-3)-beta-D-Galp(1-3 or 4)-beta-D-GlcpNAc. The LPS of H. pylori strain P466 carried the cancer-associated type-2 sialyl Lex blood-group antigen, and the LPS from strain UA915 expressed a type-1 Leb blood-group unit. These findings should aid investigations that focus on identifying and characterizing genes responsible for LPS biosynthesis in genomic strains 26695 and J99, and in understanding the role of H. pylori LPS in animal model studies. The LPSs from the H. pylori strains studied to date were grouped into specific glycotype families.     

Watershed Restoration: Principles and Practices. Edited by J. E. Williams,C. A. Wood and M. P. Dombeck

Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries -