A 20-minute breath test for helicobacter pylori

In this study, we evaluated a simplified rapid 14C-urea breath test for the diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori. Fasting patients undergoing initial assessment for H. pylori drank 5 microCi of 14C-urea in 20 ml of water. Breath was collected at intervals for 30 min. Samples were counted in a beta-counter, and the results were expressed as counts per minute (cpm). In the same week, patients underwent endoscopy, and a blinded investigator examined biopsy samples of gastric mucosa by culture and histology for H. pylori. There were 49 H. pylori-negative (HP-) and 104 H. pylori-positive (HP+) patients in the study. HP+ patients expired a mean of 4398 cpm (SD 2468) per mmol CO2 in a sample taken 20 min after ingestion of the isotope. In contrast, HP--patients expired only 340 cpm (SD 196). If the mean +3 SD of HP- patients was used as a cutoff value, the 20-minute sample gave a sensitivity of 97% and a specificity of 100% for detecting H. pylori. The radiation exposure from this test is less than 1% of that received from an upper gastrointestinal series, and the short collection time makes it both convenient and cost effective.