IMPORTANCE OF CHILDHOOD SOCIOECONOMIC-STATUS ON THE CURRENT PREVALENCE OF HELICOBACTER-PYLORI INFECTION

Helicobacter pylori infection is commoner in black and Hispanic people compared with age matched white people. H pylori status was evaluated using an enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for anti-H pylori IgG in 1 50 healthy black and Hispanic people aged between 19 and 49 years. All were employed and had completed high school at least. Socioeconomic s tatus during childhood was estimated from the parents' education and o ccupation(s) using a modified Hollingshead index and family income. Fi ve social classes were defined (class I = lowest, V = highest). The H pylori prevalence was inversely related to the social class during chi ldhood. It was 85% for class I, 52% for combined classes II and III, a nd 11% for classes IV and V combined. The inverse correlation remained after adjustments were made for the present social class and age. H p ylori infection was also related to crowded living conditions (odds ra tio 4.5: 95% confidence interval 3.3, 5.7) for those who had had the m ost crowded living conditions during childhood). The increased prevale nce of H pylori in black and Hispanic people seems to be related to lo w socioeconomic status in childhood. These data are also consistent wi th the suggestion that childhood is a period of major risk for H pylor i infection.