SEROPREVALENCE OF HELICOBACTER-PYLORI INFECTION IN MEDICAL STAFF IN SHANGHAI

Background: The epidemiology of Helicobacter pylori is still under inv estigation. It is postulated that the human stomach is the natural res ervoir and that spread occurs by oral-oral or fecal-oral transmission. The aim of this study was to determine whether medical staff, especia lly endoscopy unit personnel, are at an increased risk of acquiring H. pylori infection. Methods: An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay techn ique was used to detect circulating H. pylori IgG antibodies in 1050 m edical staff from 16 hospitals in Shanghai, including 125 GI endoscopi sts, 45 endoscopy unit nurses, 71 gastroenterologists not doing endosc opy, 105 nurses working in gastroenterology wards, 417 internists, and 287 general nurses. This group was compared with an age-matched popul ation obtained from the same urban area of the city. Results: The over all prevalence of H. pylori infection in total medical staff was 70.0% , compared to 44.6% in general population (P < 0.0001). Age-adjusted c omparisons between subgroups of medical staff were made. The prevalenc e of H. pylori in GI endoscopists was 82.4%, which is significantly hi gher than 66.4% in internists and 65.8% in general nurses (all, P < 0. 01) but not significantly different from 77.7% in endoscopy unit nurse s or from 74.2% in nurses working in gastroenterology wards (all, P > 0.05). Further analysis did not show any significant difference in the prevalence of H. pylori between other subgroups. The prevalence of H. pylori infection in GI endoscopists increased with the number of year s of practice. Conclusions: Medical staff, especially endoscopy unit p ersonnel, are at increased risk of infection with H. pylori. These fin dings strongly suggest the medical practice and endoscopy procedures a re risk factors for H. pylori infection and support person-to-person t ransmission in this setting, probably from patients to medical staff.