The appropriate age to study the incidence of Helicobacter pylori infection

ave read with great interest the study by Troncoso et al., wing that in Santiago, Chile, despite having a signifint percentage of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)-infected thers (40%), no newborn was infected at the third month life.1 It is known that H. pylori infection is acquired the preschool age group, with the associated effects of ily size, clustering in families, high infection rate accomnying low socioeconomic status and education,2 and that risk declines rapidly after 5 years of age.3 The striking ults obtained by Troncoso et al. add another piece of owledge establishing that such risk increases in the period tween 3 months and 5 years. These crucial data can lead explain in depth both the true age of H. pylori infection d the possible mode of transmission of the organism. In t, a consequence of this study is the possibility to devise ervention strategies to prevent the infection, especially country with high rate of gastric benign and malignant eases caused by the bacterium.4 This is more evident nsidering the therapeutic difficulties due to the increasing es of H. pylori-resistance to antimicrobials.5