Helicobacter pylori infection in HIV-positive patients with digestive complaints

Background. Patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), especially at advanced stages of HIV infection and low CD4+ T-lymphocytes levels, were reported to be less frequently co-infected with Helicobacter pylori than general population, according to literature data. Purpose: to study Helicobacter pylori infection in HIV-positive hosts with digestive complaints. Methods: retrospective, analytical, case-control study (November 2011 - December 2013), upon two groups of patients with gastro-intestinal symptoms tested for Helicobacter pylori stool antigen at the Infectious Diseases Laboratory, Clinical County Hospital Mureş. Group A included 44 HIV-positive patients, group B: 58 HIV-negative subjects. We first compared groups A and B regarding the frequency of Helicobacter pylori infection. Group A was afterwards divided into two sub-groups, according to the status of Helicobacter pylori infection: group A1: 5 Helicobacter pylori-positive subjects, group A2: 39 Helicobacter pylori-negative ones. We collected information regarding CD4+ T-lymphocytes level, HIV-RNA plasma viral load, previous antibiotic and antiretroviral therapy, co-morbidities, comparing A1 and A2 subgroups. Data were processed using GraphPad Prism 5 programme. Results. The frequency of Helicobacter pylori infection was 11.36% among HIV-positive patients and 13.79% in HIV-negative ones, without statistically significant difference. We found no statistically significant differences between subgroups A1 and A2 regarding CD4+ T-lymphocytes level, HIV-RNA plasma viral load, antibiotic / antiretroviral therapy. Conclusions. Though Helicobacter pylori infection may represent one of the causes of gastro-intestinal symptoms in HIV-positive patients, its frequency did not differ to that registered in the general population, in our study.