Helicobacter pylori prevalence and its association with fecal occult blood and hemoglobin concentration in children in Ilam, Iran.

Objectives: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a widespread Gram-negative bacterium, affecting over half of the global population. This study investigated the prevalence of H. pylori among children in Ilam, western Iran, and assessed potential associations between infection, fecal occult blood tests (FOBT), hemoglobin concentration (HbC), and seasonality. Methods: Overall, we recruited 92 children less than 12 years of age who were investigated with an H. pylori stool antigen (HpSA) test from January 2021 to December 2022. The HpSA test was carried out based on a sandwich enzyme immunoassay using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method. FOBT was performed on fresh samples using one-step rapid diagnostic kit. HbC was determined with an automated blood analyzer. Results: From 92 participants, 20 (21.7%) cases showed a positive result for H. pylori antigen. This result included 9 (45%) female and 11 (55%) males. There were no significant differences between H. pylori prevalence and gender (p-value = 0.46), FOBT results (p-value = 0.99), HbC (p-value = 0.60), and seasonality (p-value = 0.31). Conclusions: The findings of this study demonstrated that the results of FOBT and HbC may not provide valuable data for predicting H. pylori infection in children.