[Helicobacter pylori infection and liver diseases]

Recently, it has been shown that Helicobacter infections are associated not only with upper gastrointestinal tract diseases but also with extra-gastrointestinal diseases such as cardiovascular, liver or biliary diseases. The contributions of H. pylori to the development of hepatic encephalopathy and hyperammonemia were reported. Some studies demonstrated the effectiveness of H. pylori eradication therapy in hepatic encephalopathy, but these results have not been supported by other reports. H. pylori eradication therapy for the treatment of hyperammonemia and hepatic encephalopathy has not been recommended. The role of H. pylori infection in cholestatic liver diseases such as primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is uncertain. Furthermore, the question of whether H. pylori could play a role in the development of hepatoma remains controversial. Our study demonstrated that H. pylori infection was one of the independent risk factors for the development of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Further investigation is warranted.