title: Body indices and basic vital signs in Helicobacter pylori positive and negative persons.
abstract: It has been hypothesized that Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection may contribute to reduced stature, risk of hypertension or obesity. The aim was to evaluate body indices in Hp positive and negative persons. A total of 2436 subjects (4-100 years old) were tested for Hp status by (13)C-urea breath test. Data on height and weight were collected for 84%, and blood pressure for 80% of the study subjects. The prevalence of Hp infection was 41.6%. The odds ratio for a 10-year increase in age was 1.21 (95% CI 1.17-1.25, p-value <0.001). Statistically significant negative association of Hp positivity with body height was most pronounced in the younger age groups, while a positive association of Hp positivity with body mass index was only seen in those aged 15+ years. There was a negative effect of Hp positivity on systolic and diastolic blood pressure in subjects below 25 and a relatively strong positive effect on blood pressure in subjects over 65 years. Residual confounding by social characteristics as a possible explanation for the associations of Hp positivity with height and blood pressure cannot be excluded. Unmeasured factors related to social and family environment may cause the apparent association between Hp positivity and children's growth and blood pressure.
authors.affiliation: 2nd Department of Medicine, Charles University in Praha, Faculty of Medicine at Hradec Králové, University Teaching Hospital, Sokolská 581, 500 05, Hradec Králové, Czech Republic. kopacmar@fnhk.cz
authors.forename: Marcela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kopácová
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bures
authors.forename: Ilona
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Koupil
authors.forename: Stanislav
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rejchrt
authors.forename: Viktor
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vorísek
authors.forename: Bohumil
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Seifert
authors.forename: Oldrich
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Pozler
authors.forename: Pavel
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Zivný
authors.forename: Tomás
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Douda
authors.forename: Vladimír
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Palicka
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Holcík
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001794:Blood Pressure; D001827:Body Height; D001835:Body Weight; D001944:Breath Tests; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications