| Abstract: | IntroductionThis study consisted in the comparison of the prevalence of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) present in the stomach and in saliva of a sample of Portuguese adolescents and the assessment of the association between H. pylori infection with socio-demographic variables and prevalence of dental caries.ResultsThe prevalence of gastric H. pylori detected by UBT was 35.9%. Within the adolescents with a gastric UBT positive, only 1.9% were positive for oral H. pylori. The presence of gastric H. pylori was found to be associated with age (>15years, Odds ratio (OR)=1.64,95%CI=1.08-2.52), residence area (urban,OR=1.48,95%CI=1.03-2.29) and parents´ professional situation (unemployed,OR=1.22,95%CI=1.02-1.23). Among those with detected dental caries during the intra-oral observation, 37.4% were positive for gastric H. pylori and 40.2% negative for the same bacterial strain (p=0.3).ConclusionsThe oral cavity cannot be considered a reservoir for infection of H. pylori. Gastric H. pylori infection was found to be associated with socio-demographic variables such as age, residence area and socioeconomic status. |
