title: Serum pepsinogens as an early diagnostic marker of H. pylori eradication.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication increases the serum pepsinogen I/ pepsinogen II ratio and the percentage change in pepsinogen I/pepsinogen II ratios is a useful marker of H. pylori eradication. We studied whether the pepsinogen method could be an early diagnostic marker of H. pylori eradication even in patients persistently treated with a proton pump inhibitor.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-two H. pylori-positive patients underwent H. pylori-eradication therapy, followed by treatment with a proton pump inhibitor to cure ulcers. Serum levels of pepsinogen I and pepsinogen II were measured before, at the end of, and at 4 weeks after the eradication therapy. The cut-off values of percentage changes in pepsinogen I/pepsinogen II ratios for the diagnosis of eradication of H. pylori were set in proportion to pepsinogen I/pepsinogen II ratios before eradication in accordance with a previous report.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Using the results of 13C-urea breath test as the standard, the sensitivity, specificity and validity of the pepsinogen method were 100.0%, 89.8% and 90.3%, respectively, at 4 weeks after eradication therapy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The percentage change in serum pepsinogen I/pepsinogen II ratios is useful as an early diagnostic marker for judgment of H. pylori eradication irrespective of proton pump inhibitor treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department Laboratory Medicine, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, Hamamatus, Japan. naohito@hama-med.ac.jp
authors.forename: Naohito
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shirai
authors.forename: Takahisa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Furuta
authors.forename: Mitsushige
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sugimoto
authors.forename: Shigeru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kanaoka
authors.forename: Fumitoshi
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Misako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Takashima
authors.forename: Masami
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yamada
authors.forename: Hajime
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Futami
authors.forename: Yoshihiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kubota
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kodaira
authors.forename: Masayoshi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kajimura
authors.forename: Masato
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maekawa
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hishida
mesh_terms: D042241:Early Diagnosis; D005260:Female; D016481:Helicobacter Infections / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy; D016480:Helicobacter pylori; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010435:Pepsinogens / Q000097:blood*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D054328:Proton Pump Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D010435:Pepsinogens; D054328:Proton Pump Inhibitors