Role of Stool for H. Pylori Antigen and Upper GI Endoscopy in Diagnosis Among Patients with Dyspepsia – A Single Centre Study

Abstract

Objective: The objective of our study was to compare the efficacy of stool for H. pylori antigen test with endoscopic biopsy in patients with dyspepsia. Methodology: The study was conducted at the department of Gastroenterology, Pak Emirates Military Hospital, Rawalpindi during the time period of 10 months i.e. from August 2023 to May 2024. It was a prospective observational study. Sampling was done via non- probability consecutive sampling technique. Our study consisted of 202 patients. We included all the dyspeptic patients over 18 years of age while excluding those above 60 years of age, with comorbidities or taking PPIs and antibiotics. Demographic variables like age, gender and socioeconomic status were recorded. Data was be analysed by using statistical package for social sciences version 23 (SPSS ver 23). Quantitative variables were summarized as mean ± SD and qualitative variables were summarized as frequency and percentages. Sensitivity, specificity, Positive predictive value (PPV) and Negative predictive value (NPV) were calculated using Chi-square test. Values with P< 0.05 were considered significant at Confidence Interval (CI) 95%. Results: The results of our study showed that the sensitivity of the H.Pylori Antigen test was 86.86%, specificity was 81.54 %, positive predictive value (PPV) was 90. 84% and negative predictive value (NPV) was 74. 65%. The diagnostic accuracy of the test came out to be >85%. Conclusion: The test proved to be a beneficial diagnostic tool in terms of cost - effectiveness, with an additional benefit of being non-invasiveness. It can be used in the centers where endoscopy is not available and can also decrease the workload of endoscopy setups. Key Words: H. pylori antigen test, endoscopic biopsy, sensitivity, specificity, stool test