Prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infections among patients referred for endoscopy at Hospital Sultan Abdul Halim

Objective: To determine the prevalence of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection according\udto age, gender, ethnicity, and endoscopic finding and to study the association between smoking\udand alcohol consumption with H. pylori infection.\udMethods: A retrospective observational study on 582 consecutive patients referred for\udendoscopy with H. pylori tested was conducted in Hospital Sultan Abdul Halim from 1st of\udJanuary 2013 till 31st of December 2013. Data were analyzed using Pearson’s Chi-square,\udFisher’s exact test and binary logistic regression with SPSS version 16.\udResults: Out of the 582 patients, 74 (12.7%) were positive for H. pylori infection. Among those\udwith H. pylori infection, 42 (56.8%) were female. Infection was highest in the age group of 51\udto 60 years old, 25 (33.8%) with the mean (SD) age of 52.9 (14.9) years. From the endoscopic\udfinding, erosions, 38 (51.4%) had the highest H. pylori positive cases. H. pylori infection was\udcommonly found among Indians (36.3%; 41/113) followed by Chinese (17.6%, 18/102) and\udMalays (4.1%; 15/367) (P < 0.001). There is no significant association between smoking and\udalcohol consumption with H. pylori infection (P > 0.05).\udConclusions: The increased risk of H. pylori infection in Indians might be due to the unusual\udsocio-cultural practices and difference in diet which may be responsible for the transmission of\udthe infection. Therefore, further studies are warranted