title: Prevalence and predictors of Helicobacter pylori infection in children and adults from the Penan ethnic minority of Malaysian Borneo.
abstract: To determine the prevalence of Helicobacter pylori antigen carriage in stool in the Penan ethnic minority in Malaysian Borneo, we studied 295 Penans 0.6-89.0 years of age from 1) the remote Limbang Division, 2) Mulu regional center, and 3) Belaga village. Overall, 37.7% of the subjects tested positive. Peak prevalence was reached by 10 years of age. There were no differences in age, sex, body mass index, and socioeconomic/domestic variables between antigen-positive and antigen-negative subjects. In a logistic regression analysis, subjects from Limbang were least likely to be antigen-positive (odds ratio [OR] = 0.23, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.12-0.44 versus other sites, P < 0.001). Availability of a flushing toilet was protective against H. pylori carriage (OR = 0.51, 95% CI = 0.27-0.95, P = 0.031). Infection with H. pylori among the Penan was less than reported in other low socioeconomic groups. The lowest prevalence in the most remote setting suggests that the infection has been a recent arrival in previously isolated communities.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Kuching, Malaysia. sshuang@fhs.unimas.my
authors.forename: Simon Siong Sing
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Abdul Karim Russ
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Hassan
authors.forename: Keng Ee
authors.initials: KE
authors.lastname: Choo
authors.forename: Mohamad Iswandy
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Ibrahim
authors.forename: Timothy M E
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Davis
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D044466:Asian People; D001893:Borneo / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005243:Feces / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000382:microbiology; D016480:Helicobacter pylori / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015995:Prevalence
chemical_list: D000942:Antigens, Bacterial