Gastrospirillum hominis in asymptomatic, healthy individuals

Gastrospirillum hominis is a spiral-shaped bacterium found in the stomach. It has been implicated as a possible cause of chronic gastritis. We report two cases of G. hominis colonization observed in a series of 175 healthy, asymptomatic volunteers investigated for Helicobacter pylori. None of the volunteers had symptoms or a history of gastrointestinal disease. Both carriers of G. hominis had histological signs of chronic, active antral gastritis. Multiple tests for H. pylori were negative. The prevalence of this spiral bacterium in healthy, asymptomatic individuals may be as low as in symptomatic persons.