Open AccessHelicobacter pylori prevalence in healthy Mexican children: comparison between two non-invasive methods
Author(s) -
Verónica I. Martínez-Santos,
Manuel Hernández Catalán,
Luis Octavio Ojeda Salazar,
Octavio Andrei Orozco Gómez,
Sandra Lorenzo,
Rayver Santos Gómez,
Norma Samanta Romero-Castro,
Roxana Reyes Ríos,
Dinorah Nashely MartínezCarrillo,
Gloria FernándezTilapa
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
peerj
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.927
H-Index - 70
ISSN - 2167-8359
DOI - 10.7717/peerj.11546
Subject(s) - saliva , helicobacter pylori , asymptomatic , medicine , concordance , gastroenterology , dental plaque , dentistry
Background Helicobacter pylori detection in asymptomatic children with suspected infection or with symptoms that suggest gastric pathology is problematic, since most of the methods depend on the endoscopic study, an invasive and expensive method. Non-invasive methods can be a feasible alternative but must be validated. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the concordance between H. pylori DNA detection in saliva and dental plaque by PCR, with antigen detection in stool by immunochromatography, among asymptomatic children in the state of Guerrero, Mexico. Methods Dental plaque, saliva, and stool samples were obtained from 171 children between 6 and 12 years old. H. pylori detection in saliva and dental plaque was performed by PCR using specific primers for the 16S rRNA gene, while the detection in stool samples was performed by immunochromatography using the CerTest kit. Results We found an overall H. pylori prevalence of 59.6% (102/171). Of the H. pylori positive children 18% (20/111) were positive in saliva samples, 28.1% (34/121) in dental plaque samples, and 50.4% (71/141) in stool samples. A higher prevalence was found in girls (64.7%, p = 0.002). Although some of the children declared some dyspeptic symptoms, these were no related to H. pylori . In conclusion, we found a high prevalence of H. pylori in asymptomatic children and the highest proportion was detected by stool antigen test, which was the most feasible method to detect H. pylori infection.