Abstract :
Helicobacter pylori infection (H. pylori) is linked to different gastric and systemic diseases. Recent studies show that patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have a low prevalence of H. pylori infection. Several environmental factors, including diet, smoking, breastfeeding, drugs, and hygiene theory, contribute to the pathogenesis and disease activity of IBD. H. pylori is one of the environmental infections causing changes in gut microbiota and immune system dysregulation, which may affect IBD activity. The current study aimed to detect the frequency of helicobacter pylori infection among the of examined the newly diagnosed inflammatory bowel disease and compare the clinical, laboratory, and histological severity of the examined patients at time of diagnosis in relation to the presence or absence of H. pylori infection. The present study is a cross-sectional study conducted on one hundred newly diagnosed inflammatory bowel disease patients (83 ulcerative colitis patients and 17 Crohn's disease patients). Patients were recruited between January 2019 and January 2021 and tested for H. pylori by the H. pylori stool antigen. Laboratory and clinical disease activity were investigated among both positive and negative H. pylori Inflammatory bowel disease patients. Patients with positive stool antigen had a significantly lower fecal calprotectin (166.76 ± 32.81 vs. 242.95 ± 55.65 (μg/mg); P= 0.03) and Mayo score for ulcerative patients (5.18 ± 0.98 vs. 7.09 ± 2.13; P < 0.001) compared to those with negative stool antigen. Also, both groups showed a significant difference regarding histological disease activity. H. pylori-positive inflammatory bowel disease patients have less activity compared to H. pylori-negative inflammatory bowel disease patients at time of diagnosis.
