Seroprevalence, Risk Factors and Nutritional Implications of Helicobacter Pylori Infection Among University Students in Calabar, Nigeria

Introduction: Helicobacter pylori infection remains a major health concern around the world as untreated infection can lead to gastric cancer. Host diet and nutrition status have been shown to influence disease outcomes The burden of H. pylori infection in Nigeria is very high, but the prevalence of the infection in Calabar is not yet established. The infection is linked with poor hygiene, unsanitary and crowded living conditions associated with some University hostel accomodations. Objectives: This study aimed to determine the seroprevalence, risk factors and the nutritional implications of H. pylori infection among students residing in Malabor, University of Calabar, Nigeria. Method: This study enrolled 103 male and female students residing in Malabor hostels. Five mililitres of blood sample was collected from subjects after informed consent, in ethylene diamine tetra acetic acid (EDTA) bottles for serological test using rapid test strip (Swe-Care, India) following manufacturer’s instructions. Test kit was validated in the laboratory before screening,comparing results with two reference tests, rapid urease test and culture. Weight and height of subjects were also measured for body mass index (BMI) calculation. Results: The sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV of the test kit were 100%, 67%, 80% and 100% respectively. The seroprevalence of H. pylori infection in the study was 35.9%(37/103). comprising 21.4%(22/103) and 14.6%(15/103) for male and female subjects respectively. There was a statistically significant difference in the prevalence of H. pylori infection between male and female subjects (χ² = 12.51; p = 0.0003). From BMI, 92.2% of subjects had healthy weight status while 2.91% were underweight and 0.97% of subjects was obese. Risk factors for H. pylori infection identified in this study included gender (χ2 = 12.5652; p = 0.0003), previous infection (χ2 = 2.572; p = 0.012), crowded living condition and outdoor meals from food vendors. Conclusion: H. pylori infection was found among student populations in Malabor with moderately high seroprevalence (35.9%). However, the nutritional implications for the students was insignificant as 9.7% reported loss of appetite and consequent weight loss.