A STUDY OF HELICOBACTER PYLORI INFECTION IN BRONCHIAL ASTHMA

Abstract

Infectious agents are now assumed to be the cause of diseases that have been considered previously of non-infectious etiology. H. pylori as a gram-negative spiral organism is a cause of peptic ulcer disease and it is known to be associated with other gastrointestinal disorders. Recently, it is assumed that H. pylori organism is associated with a

wide variety of extra gastrointestinal conditions, e.g. coronary heart diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, food allergy in children and bronchiectasis. Many authors hypothesized that H. pylori might trigger a local inflammatory response or a systemic immune response. On the other hand, bronchial asthma is considered a chronic inflammatory condition, which may be triggered by various infectious agents. This study was conducted on 25 asthmatic patients (16 males and

9 females) with a mean age 39.8 years and also 15 healthy control subjects ( 9 males and 6 females ) with a mean age 41.7 years. Bronchial biopsies were taken from all patients and control subjects enrolled in the study through the fiber optic bronchoscope and inserted in rapid urease tests. Blood samples were collected, separated promptly and kept tell time examination. Sera of all subjects (patients and controls) were examined for H. pylori lgG using ELISA technique.