Screening of Helicobacter pylori in patients with dyspeptic complaints with the urea breath test and its usability in family medicine

Abstract

Objective: Helicobacter pylori (H.pylori) is a common cause of gastritis, peptic ulcer disease, gastric lymphoma, and gastric cancer. H.pylori positive in patients with dyspeptic complaints should be investigated in order to determine the etiology and reduce the risk of H.pylori-related malignancy. The urea breath test (UBT) is a simple, convenient, and highly accurate H.pylori screening test with excellent sensitivity and specificity. The utility of UBT as a screening test in family medicine was examined in this study, that investigated at H.pylori positive in patients with dyspeptic complaints. Method: A retrospective, cross-sectional, descriptive, single-center study was conducted. The results of the C14-UBT for H.pylori were investigated by scanning the archives of patients over the age of 18 who applied with dyspeptic complaints in an education and research hospital within a calendar year. In the evaluation of UBT results, ≥50cpm was considered positive, <25cpm negative, and 25-50cpm was considered suspicious. Results: The UBT findings of 1192 patients were included, with an acceptability rate of 83 percent. The average age of the participants was 48.7±15.3 years, with 61 percent of them being women and 39 percent being men. The UBT was 81.5cpm on average (IQR=214, min=0, max=909). According to the findings, 56 percent (n=667) of the participants tested positive for H.pylori, 43.2 percent (n=515) tested negative for H.pylori, and 0.8 percent (n=10) tested suspicious for H.pylori. Although 56.4 percent of women and 55.3 percent of males tested positive for H.pylori, there was no statistically significant difference (p>0.05). Conclusion: In this study conducted on a large group of patients, H.pylori positivity was found in 56% with the UBT. Considering this result, it has been evaluated that, in cases where the World Health Organization recommends H.pylori screening, and in patients with dyspeptic complaints but no alarm symptoms, H.pylori should be screened with urea breath test in Family Health Centers as an important preventive healthcare service.

Analysis of Clinical Application of C13-urea Breath Test for Detection of Helicobacter Pylori Infection

“…By the time the disease symptoms become apparent and the patient seeks medical consultation, the early intervention opportunity is often missed. Therefore, it is necessary to further screen high-risk individuals for Helicobacter pylori infection in clinical practice and then implement targeted measures for treatment [13][14][15].…”