Age-related Features of Helicobacter Pylori-Associated Chronic Gastritis

Abstract

One of the causes of the occurrence and development of diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract is infection of the gastric mucosa (GM) with Helicobacter pylori (HP). According to various authors, HP infection in different countries fluctuates between 50-80% in children and reaches 90% in adults. It is preferable to diagnose this infection in children using non-invasive methods. The preferential use in pediatric practice of "one non-invasive examination, which will be sufficient before the start of treatment." Invasive diagnostics is also difficult in adult patients with severe concomitant pathology (CHD, hypertension, bronchial asthma). Therefore, the search for new methods of non-invasive respiratory diagnostics of Helicobacter pylori infection, which have high sensitivity and specificity, remains relevant today. HP infection predisposes to a chronic inflammatory process mainly in the antral part of the stomach, which with age leads to the development of multifocal atrophic gastritis, and subsequently to gastric cancer. At the same time, it was believed that the development of such changes takes about 20 years. In modern literature, there are data on the progression of atrophic changes in the gastric mucosa at an earlier stage. Thus, in 6% of patients they are detected after 2 years, and after 10 years - in 43% of patients. In recent years, there has been an increase in the incidence of severe forms of gastritis in children, accompanied by damage to both parts of the gastric mucosa, the development of sub-atrophic and atrophic changes, as well as intestinal metaplasia.