Prevalence and possible risk factors of Helicobacter pylori infection among children attending Damanhour Teaching Hospital.

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a major cause of gastrointestinal disease in children. The factors influencing the acquisition and prevalence of H. pylori infection remain incompletely understood. In the present study, the prevalence and possible risk factors of H. pylori infection were studied among children aged 1.5-16 years who were attending the pediatric outpatient clinic of Damanhour Teaching Hospital. Blood samples were drawn and IgG seroprevalence of H. pylori among the studied children was determined using ELISA kits. A specially designed questionnaire inquired about personal, socioeconomic, household characteristics, feeding history during infancy and the child's health data was completed for every child. Results revealed that the overall seroprevalence of H. pylori infection was 50.5 %. The prevalence was widely age dependent: it was 60.6% among those age > or = 5 years and only 25.9% among those < 5 years (OR = 4.4; 95% CI = 1.6-11.9). Increased crowding in bed was also an associated factor; the prevalence among children where > or = 3 share a bed was 59.7% compared to only 26.9% among those where < 3 persons share a bed (OR = 4.1; 95% CI = 1.5-10.9). The prevalence among children who were breast fed for < 1 year was 64.7% compared to only 42.4% among those who were fed for > or =1 year (OR = 2.5; 95% CI = 1.1-5.9). After controlling for possible confounding in a Stepwise Multiple Logistic Regression model, independent predictors for H. pylori infection were: increasing age (> or = 5 years), overcrowding in bed (> or = 3/ bed) and shorter duration of breast-feeding (< 1 year) during infancy. It could be concluded that, H. pylori was highly prevalent among the sampled children and the possible risk factors are related to the community. So, there is a need to early diagnose, treat and eradicate infection during childhood to prevent its complications during adulthood.