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Helicobacter pylori infection: an added stressor on iron status of women in the community
Author(s) -
Peach Hedley G,
Bath Nicole E,
Farish Stephen J
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
medical journal of australia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1326-5377
pISSN - 0025-729X
DOI - 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1998.tb140218.x
Subject(s) - helicobacter pylori , iron status , ferritin , stressor , medicine , transferrin , helicobacter pylori infection , disease , population , serum iron , immunology , gastroenterology , iron deficiency , environmental health , anemia , clinical psychology
Objective: To explore a possible association between Helicobacter pylori infection and iron status. Design: Cross‐sectional study. Setting: Ballarat (a major regional city in Victoria), population 78000, October November 1997. Participants: 160 women and 152 men, a subsample of participants in a cardiovascular disease risk factor prevalence survey for whom frozen plasma was available. Main outcome measures: H. pylori lgG antibody status by enzyme immunoassay; iron intake; plasma iron, transferrin and ferritin concentrations. Results: 28% of women and 33% of men were infected with H. pylori. The mean (SEM) plasma ferritin concentration of infected women (59.3 (7.6) µg/L) was significantly lower than for non‐infected women (88.8 (7.9) µg/L; P=0.002), after adjusting for age. Mean daily dietary iron intakes were similar in infected and non infected women. Conclusions: H. pylori infection appears to be an additional stressor on women's iron status, but the mechanism remains to be determined.