Purpose: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is one of the causes of gastritis, peptic ulcer disease, gastric cancer and MALT-lymphoma. The frequency of H. pylori infection is different in various regions of the world and dependent on age, socioeconomic and hygiene status. The objective of this study was to assess seroprevalence and the associated socioeconomic and sociodemographic characteristics influencing H. pylori infection in children and adults in Polish population.Material/methods: In multicenter epidemiological studies, H. pylori infection occurrence was assessed in Poland in the years 2002 and 2003. The seroprevalence of H. pylori infection diagnosis was based on IgG anti-H. pylori antibodies concentration above 24 UI/ml, which was measured using ELISA test. The study included 6565 subjects: 3307 adults (50.37%) and 3258 children (49.63%).Results: Positive result was observed in 3827 subjects (58.29%), i. e. 1043 children (32.01%) and 2784 adults (84.19%). H. pylori infection prevalence was greater in children of poor economic status, who were born in a rural area, lived in crowded houses with no running tap water and with toilet outside the house, and who did not observe hygiene rules. In adults, the factors predisposing to higher probability of being H. pylori infected included: being born in a rural area, having low family income and elementary education, smoking tobacco, drinking high proof alcohols as well as not observing of hygiene rules.Conclusions: Improvement of socioeconomic status, sanitary and hygienic conditions and the education of the society might decrease H. pylori infection prevalence in children and in adults. (C) 2014 Medical University of Bialystok. Published by Elsevier Urban & Partner Sp. z o.o. All rights reserved.

Objective To assess the relationship between Helicobacter pylori density determined by quantitative culture, H. pylori cagA status, and gastric histology in children.Methods Children with clinical symptoms indicating pathology in the upper gastrointestinal tract were referred for endoscopy. From each child blood was taken for serology, and antral biopsies were obtained for quantitative culture of H. pylori and histology. Histological assessment was performed according to the updated Sydney System. The cagA status of cultured H. pylori was determined by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and serum IgG response to CagA by western blotting.Results Adequate antral biopsies were obtained from 41 children with positive H. pylori cultures. CagA IgG antibodies were found in 27 patients (66%), 25 of whom were also cagA positive by the PCR. Two children infected with cagA+ strains as determined by the PCR were CagA seronegative. Infection with cagA+ strains was associated with significantly higher activity of inflammation and denser bacterial colonization in the antrum compared to cagA-negative strains. No correlation was observed between the density of colonization and chronic antral inflammation.Conclusions This study shows that infection of children with cagA+ strains of H. pylori is associated with enhanced activity of antral inflammation and higher density of colonization. There is a good correlation between serum western blot and bacterial PCR cagA positivity in determining cagA status and a positive relationship between histology and quantitative culture in assessing H. pylori density in paediatric patients.

The possibility of amplification of human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) DNA in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) for the diagnosis of HCMV central nervous system (CNS) infection in infants was studied. Single-step PCR, nested PCR and PCR-Digene were used to assay CSF specimens from 37 patients. Criteria for patient inclusion in the study were: 1. clinical manifestations suggesting CMV neuroinfection such as seizures, hypertonia, hypotonia, intracranial calcification, microcephaly, chorioretinitis; 2. any of the following symptoms: anaemia, hepetomegaly, prolonged cholestatic jaundice, or hepatitis, splenomegaly, thrombocytopenia, intrauterine hypotrophy; 3. serologic presentation, and/or positive results for CMV infection obtained by single-step PCR and PCR-Digene in urine and/or blood. PCR-Digene results were positive in 6 CSF samples. Four CSF samples were positive by nested PCR and 1 CSF sample by single step PCR. We found that the double PCR was about ten or more times more sensitive than single PCR and the PCR-Digene was only three times more sensitive than nested-PCR. The results were correlated with serology. Thirty-three out of 37 examined patients were seropositive (ELISA IgG); ELISA IgM gave positive results in 9 patients. In control studies, cells infected with other members of the herpes virus family were negative with these methods, which suggest that amplification combined with primers from the IE and the L-region of CMV is specific. In conclusion, nested-PCR seems to be the best method for early diagnosis of CMV infection in CSF due to an absence of false positive results and its high specificity and sensitivity.

The role of Helicobacter pylori in gastric carcinogenesis is a subject of an increasing interest. In this report we describe a prospective study on the resected stomachs to establish the prevalence of H. pylori in different types of gastric carcinoma. The material consisted of 62 consecutive patients operated on stomach adenocarcinomas Fifty six percent of the patients were intestinal type, 34%--diffuse type and 10%--mixed type. The presence of H. pylori was studied in specimens from surgically removed stomachs. The conformation of the bacterial infection was done by means of rapid urease test, microbiological culture, Warthin-Starry and immunohistochemical staining. The overall prevalence of H. pylori infection was 69% (43/62). There was a statistically significant difference in the infection rates between the types of carcinoma--75% in the intestinal type and 62% in the diffuse type. The most sensitive was immunohistochemical staining. The bacterial colonies were cumulated far from the tumor tissue. In cardiac cancer the most intense of infection was an antrum and lower part of gastric body. In opposite; in antrum and pylorus cancer the scope of colonisation increased in fundus and subcardiac region with statistical signification. We could not detect H. pylori in the tumor tissue itself as in the normal mucosa of the stomach. In gastric antrum the most intense colonisation was detected on mucosal atrophy, but in the upper part of the stomach--on the mucosal metaplasia.

From 191 children with upper gastroduodenal disease 236 gastric biopsy specimens were taken. H. pylori was detected by use of culture Gram staining histological examination and PCR technique. A segment of DNA coding protein synthesis of 26 kDa or urease A and B gene were used for PCR amplification. PCR technique was also used for determination of the presence of Cag A gene in 72 strains of H. pylori isolated from children. Genetic typing of H. pylori strains by RFLP analysis of PCR amplified urease B gene 933 bp fragment and RAPD were performed. Biopsy specimens taken from children with gastritis were in 52% H. pylori culture and PCR positive, while 18.1% PCR positive only. Similarly, specimens taken from children with duodenal ulcer were in 50% H. pylori culture and PCR positive, while 12.5% PCR positive only. Fifty one (70.8%) from 72 strains of H. pylori were Cag A positive. Molecular typing of the strains isolated during first and follow-up endoscopy allowed the differentiation between reinfection or new infection and coinfection. It was shown that RAPD typing had better discrimination power in comparison to PCR-RFLP method.