Diagnosis and distribution of Helicobacter pylori in the gastric mucosa of symptomatic children.

1. The demonstration of the association of H. pylori with gastritis and peptic ulcer has been of increasing interest to gastroenterologists, microbiologists, and histopathologists. 2. In this study, the presence of H. pylori in the gastric mucosa of children was investigated by culture, preformed urease test, and carbolfuchsin staining of biopsy smears. 3. The organism was detected in 44.9% of the children studied, and found to be distributed equally on the antral and fundic mucosa. 4. Compared to culture, the urease test and carbolfuchsin staining proved to be of higher sensitivity and specificity in detecting H. pylori.