Immunological response to Helicobacter pylori among healthy volunteers in Agbor, Nigeria

Abstract

Objective To determine Helicobacter pylori ( H. pylori) immunologically. Method The seroprevalence of H. pylori infection was determined by ELISA technique in 380 individuals who gave informed consent, comprising 180 males (47.4%) and 200 females (52.6%) in Agbor, Nigeria. 124 (27.4%) of the subjects lived in the rural communities while 276 (72.6%) lived in the urban areas of Agbor. They were aged 1 to over 70 yr [(mean age±SD)=(39±9. 42) yr]. Five milliliter of clotted blood was obtained from each subject for specific HP-IgG antibodies. Results Antibodies to H. pylori were detected in serum of 159 males (88.3%) and 182 females (91.0%). This was not statistically significant ( P> 0.05). A total of 341 (89.7±21.4%) subjects presented anti- H. pylori antibodies. The prevalence of H. pylori increased with age from 14.8% in age group 1–9 yr to 100% in age group 30-39 yr and 60–69 yr. At above 70 yr, the seroprevalence decreased to 93.3%. Conclusions The prevalence of H. pylori in Agbor is very high among adults while comparatively low among children. Since a lot of factors have been attributed to affect the rate of infection, increased standard of living and improved public health measures are encouraged and studies on the development and administration of an effective vaccine is recommended.