[Frequency of Campylobacter pylori in apparently healthy and asymptomatic Venezuelans]

We evaluated 21 healthy asymptomatic Venezuelan volunteers free of risk factors for gastritis with upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, and four antral biopsies: a)2 for histological examinations, b) Urease test, c) culture and gram coloration. 13 out of 21 subjects were positive for Campylobacter pylori (61.30%) all of them had chronic gastritis and in the negative cases 7 were considered histologically normal. Urease test was positive in 12/13 with a sensitivity of 92% and 100% specificity. Frequency in our series is high for Campylobacter pylori (61.30%) and this justify prospective and massive study of the population to detect de prevalence in our country with simpler and cheaper methods.