Tasa de reinfección por Helicobacter pylori en una cohorte de pacientes colombianos tratados exitosamente con seguimiento superior a 2 años.

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infects at least half the world's population although its prevalence is higher in developing countries. The reinfection rate varies from region to region and may include recrudescence of infection or true recurrence. So far there are few studies that have investigated recurrence of infections in Colombia, and none had been done in Bogota, Colombia. Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the rate of recurrence of H. pylori in patients who had been treated effectively with three different triple therapies. Materials and Methods: This was an observational study nested in a cohort of 180 patients in whom H. pylori had been successfully eradicated during 2008 and 2009. Eradication was verified with the labeled urea breath test. The average follow-up time was 43.7 months (range: 31-56 months). Recurrence was investigated with monoclonal stool antigen tests (ImmunoCard STAT®, HpSA (Meridian Bioscience Inc.)). Results: A total of 86 patients were monitored during the follow-up period. Out of this group the reinfection rate was 5.8% (5/86). The annual reinfection rate was 1.59% (5/313.4 patient-years x 100). The first case of reinfection was presented at 32 months, and the other cases occurred at 37, 42, 44 and 56 month of followup. The reinfection rate was 1.8%/year calculated after two years of monitoring. Conclusions: The H. pylori reinfection rate in Bogotá is low and is less than that previously reported for other regions of Colombia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]