Helicobacter pylori infection within families

Although H. pylori is now well established as the aetiological agent of acute or chronic gastritis and a predisposing factor in peptic ulceration knowledge regarding the transmission of this organism is unclear. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of H. pylori infection in the family members of index children infected with this organism and to examine the role of ethnic background and the relationship of hepatitis A infection to H. pylori infection. The H. pylori status of three groups of subjects, the family members of 21 children shown by endoscopical and histological examination to be infected with H. pylori, the family members of 17 children who had been the index case in a hepatitis study and a control group of Australian blood donors and children were examined using an IgG ELISA. The results of this study showed an increased prevalence of H. pylori infection to exist in the family members of index children infected with H. pylori compared with the family members of children not infected with H. pylori and an age matched blood donor control group. This increased prevalence of H. pylori infection was not dependent on ethnic background and appeared to be unrelated to the hepatitis A status of subjects. These results strongly support the view that transmission of H. pylori is person to person and that transmission may not be the faecal oral route.