Changes in serum ammonia concentration in cirrhotic patients with Helicobacter pylori infection

Objective To study whether liver cirrhosis associated with Helicobacter pyl ori (H. pylori) infection will induce increased serum ammonia and whether t he peripheral serum ammonia reflects the level of portal vein serum ammonia . Methods Blood was taken from the portal vein and the cubital vein in cirrho tic patients with and without H. pylori infection and non-cirrhotic patient s (splenic rupture) with and without H. pylori infection, and the serum amm onia was measured. Results The mean levels of serum ammonia in the group of cirrhotic patients with H. pylori infection were 167.82 +/- 8.97 mu mol/L (portal vein) and 1 42.2 +/- 13.35 mu mol/L (cubital vein). They were increased significantly a s compared with cirrhotic patients without H. pylori infection (47.68 +/- 1 2.03 mu mol/L portal vein and 37.23 +/- 7.04 mu mol/L cubital vein), and al so compared with the groups of splenic rupture patients with and without H. pylori infection (P < 0.01). There was no significant difference between t he serum ammonia level of the cubital vein and portal vein (P > 0.05). Conclusions H. pylori infection can induce an increase in serum ammonia in patients with liver dysfunction, and the peripheral serum ammonia measureme nt may replace the portal vein serum ammonia as a monitoring method. Eradic ation of H. pylori in cirrhotic patients may prevent hepatic encephalopathy (HE).