[Campylobacter pylori: diagnostic value of the urease test during endoscopy]

The aims of this prospective study were a) to evaluate the diagnostic value of the urease test for the detection of C. pylori in gastric biopsy specimens, b) to specify the prevalence of C. pylori in a sample of 74 patients from the Grenoble area undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, c) to analyze the density of bacteria according to the biopsy site (antrum, body, edges of ulcer), d) to demonstrate any possible correlation between the histologic state of the antral and body mucosa and the presence of C. pylori. An antral biopsy was taken for the urease test during endoscopy. Biopsies were also taken from the body, the antrum and the edges of gastric or duodenal ulcers for bacterial and histologic studies, and urease test in the bacterial laboratory. The sensitivity and the specificity of the urease test during endoscopy varied according to the delay in observation of the color change. They were 0.81 and 0.84, respectively, at 2 h 30. The sensitivity and specificity of the urease test in the bacterial laboratory were 0.67 and 0.95, respectively, for the same delay. The global prevalence of C. pylori was 51 p. 100: it was 42 p. 100 in the absence of ulcer, 67 p. 100 in the presence of gastric ulcer, and 71 p. 100 in the presence of duodenal ulcer (p less than 0.05 compared to the group without ulcer).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)