Helicobacter pylori is not associated with nonspecific abdominal pain in children.
Nonspecific abdominal pain is a significant problem in the pediatric population, and there has been much recent interest in the role that Helicobacter pylori (HP) might play in this disorder. A retrospective review was conducted at our center to determine its prevalence among children with otherwise undiagnosed abdominal pain. The study was conducted over a 45-month period during which 47 patients underwent gastroscopy and antral biopsies in the workup of this problem. Of the 37 patients who did not have a history of acid-pepsin disease (APD), only one (2.7%) tested positive for HP. In contrast, of the 10 who had a history of APD, three (30%) tested positive (P < .03). There were no distinguishing features among the HP-positive patients except for the presence of associated antral gastritis. Based on the current endoscopic results, of the nine patients with current evidence of APD, four (44%) were positive for HP; of the other 38 patients, none was positive for HP. Therefore, HP appears to be associated with antral gastritis, and HP does not play a role in nonspecific abdominal pain in this population.
Yoshida
N R
NR
Izaak Walton Killam Hospital for Sick Children, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Webber
E M
EM
Fraser
R B
RB
Ste-Marie
M T
MT
Giacomantonio
J M
JM
D015746:Abdominal Pain / Q000382:microbiology*; D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005756:Gastritis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000382:microbiology; D005773:Gastroscopy; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011706:Pyloric Antrum / Q000473:pathology; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies