Routine Screening for H. pylori Infection

Quality-of-life scores, use of acid-reducing therapies, and dyspepsia-related medical costs were similar with screening and without.

Is community-based screening for Helicobacter pylori infection worthwhile? To answer this question, about 12,000 middle-aged residents of a Danish city were randomized to H. pylori screening (using a blood antibody test, with positives confirmed by breath testing) or no screening; the 18% of screened people who tested positive received eradication therapy. In a previously published report, the 1-year prevalence of dyspepsia in the screened group had decreased by 4 percentage points, an outcome of only modest clinical significance (JW Gastroenterol Sep 30 2003). Because downstream benefits of H. pylori eradication might emerge over time, the researchers now provide long-term follow-up.

At 5 years, the prevalence of dyspepsia was about 20% in …

Reviewing Author

Allan S. Brett, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose

Allan S. Brett, MD

Disclosures

Nothing to disclose