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Most data supporting the relationship between Helicobacter pylori infection and peptic ulcer disease (PUD) come from cross-sectional or retrospective studies. Now, investigators have prospectively analyzed this association in a cohort of 9953 patients aged 50 to 74 recruited from general practices in southwest Germany.
Lifetime history of PUD was self-reported and confirmed with medical records. Presence of H. pylori infection, including status as positive or negative for cytotoxin-associated gene A (cagA), was ascertained by serology. Reports of incident ulcers were confirmed by physicians and identified as duodenal or gastric ulcers.
In a cross-sectional analysis involving 8699 participants, a lifetime history of PUD was associated with cag…