CORRELATION BETWEEN HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION AND RISK OF ESOPHAGOGASTRIC VARICEAL BLEEDING IN LIVER CIRRHOSIS

Abstract

Background: Bleeding from esophageal and gastric varices is a fatal event in patients with liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension. Objective: Evaluation the correlation between Helicobacter Pylori infection and risk of esophagogastric variceal bleeding in liver cirrhosis. Patients and Methods: This study was carried out on one hundred (100) patients, suffering from post hepatitic cirrhosis and portal hypertension: fifty (50) of them presented with esophageogastric varices without bleeding selected from patients coming for screening of esophagogastric varices for anti-hepatitis c virus treatment, and the other fifty (50) presented with acute variceal bleeding. All patients attending to Internal Medicine outpatient’s clinic and Internal Medicine Department of Al-Azhar University Hospital at new Damietta during the period from September 2018, to April 2020. All patients were subjected to complete history, clinical assessment, abdominal ultrasonography, upper GIT endoscope and laboratory investigations. Results: There was a significant relation between H.Pylori infection and the presence of esophagogastric variceal hemorrhage and H. Pylori infection was positive in 92% of the patients in group II, and 24% patients was grade II oseophageal varices, 70% grade III oseophagogastric varices, and 6% grade IV oseophagogastric varices, There was a statistically significant correlation of increased esophageal varices (grade three) in positive H pylori in group II, while in group I detection of H.pylori showed 24% patients were positive, and 76% patients were negative. Endoscopic examination showed 40 patients without esophagogastric varices (80%), 8% patients grade I, 4% patients grade II, 6% patients grade III, 2% patients grade IV, and there was a statistically significant increase on esophageal varices (grade zero) in negative H pylori in group I. Conclusion: Helicobacter Pylori infection helped in the development of portal hypertensive gastropathy as well as its severity, and increased risk of esophagogastric variceal bleeding in patients with liver cirrhosis. So, eradication and treatment of Helicobacter Pylori in all patients with liver cirrhosis helped to decrease risk of esophagogastric variceal bleeding in these patients.