Abstract
The relationship between
Helicobacter pylori
(
H. pylori
) infection and Portal hypertensive gastropathy (PHG) is still a debatable matter. The aim of this study is to find out how common
H. pylori
infection is in cirrhotic patients with PHG and to see if there’s a link between
H. pylori
infection and PHG severity. Out of 340 cirrhotic patients who had upper Gastrointestinal Tract (GIT) endoscopy for early varices screening, 160 cirrhotic patients were selected and divided into 2 groups; 80 cirrhotic patients with PHG (cases) and 80 cirrhotic patients without PHG (controls). Gastric biopsies were taken from all enrolled patients for histological evaluation for the presence or absence of
H. pylori
infection.
H. pylori
was found in 44 cirrhotic patients (55%) who had PHG (cases), compared to 22 cirrhotic patients (27.5%) who did not have PHG (controls). The prevalence of
H. pylori
infection was significantly higher in patients with PHG (
p
< 0.001). The severity of PHG was associated with
H. pylori
infection (
p
< 0.001). The response to eradication therapy of
H. pylori
infection was must better in patients without PHG (
p
= 0.045). By multi-variant analysis,
H. pylori
infection, splenic diameter, and portal vein diameter were independent predictors for PHG presence. After treating
H. pylori
infection in patients who tested positive for
H. pylori
, there was a significant reduction in PHG severity (
p
< 0.001). Patients with PHG have a greater prevalence of
H. pylori
infection. PHG is more severe in patients infected with
H. pylori
. To improve PHG severity, cirrhotic patients must have their
H. pylori
infection eradicated.