Helicobacter pylori, hypergastrinaemia, and recurrent abdominal pain in children.
The association between Helicobacter pylori and recurrent abdominal pain (RAP) is controversial. In this cross-sectional study, the authors aim to determine whether hypergastrinaemia causes RAP in children with H pylori gastritis. In 439 children age 4 to 13 years (mean 7.3 years) attending for nongastrointestinal day-case surgery, anti-Helicobacter immunoglobulin G (IgG) was identified in serum by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method validated in children and fasting plasma gastrin was measured. A history of RAP was sought. One hundred twenty-seven children (29%) tested seropositive for H pylori. Fifty-one seronegative children (16.3%) and 22 seropositive children (17.3%) gave a history of RAP. The mean fasting gastrin in seronegative children was 52 ng/L compared with 117 ng/L in seropositive children (P < .001). The mean fasting gastrin in seropositive children with RAP (124 ng/L) was not significantly different from that of seropositive children without RAP (115 ng/L). The high prevalence of H pylori seropositivity in this study is at variance with other reported paediatric data from the developed world. No association between childhood H pylori gastritis, hypergastrinaemia, and RAP was found. In children with H pylori gastritis, the increase in circulating gastrin (mean 140% increase) is greater than that seen in adults (50% increase).
McCallion
W A
WA
Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children, Department of Medicine, Queen's University of Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Bailie
A G
AG
Ardill
J E
JE
Bamford
K B
KB
Potts
S R
SR
Boston
V E
VE
D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005755:Gastrins / Q000097:blood*; D005756:Gastritis / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012008:Recurrence; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
D005755:Gastrins