Korean J Gastroenterol.  2003 Aug;42(2):115-120.

Diagnosis of Helicobacter pylori Infection with Urine and Stool

• Lee YH
• Lee SY
• Kim YT
• Park CK
• Jo CM
• Tak WY
• Kweon YO
• Kim SK
• Choi YH

Abstract

BACKGROUND/AIMS: The urine antibody and stool antigen test are newly developed non-invasive tests for Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection. The aim of this study was to assess the diagnostic value of these tests. METHODS: Urine and stool specimens from 50 consecutive patients who had undergone gastroscopy (28 men, mean age 54 years) were obtained. A kit for antibody against H. pylori (RAPIRUN test) was used for urine specimens and a kit for H. pylori antigen using ELISA (HpSA test) was used for stool specimens. None of patients had ever received any treatment to eradicate H. pylori. The H. pylori status was evaluated based on three different tests (histology, 13C-urea breath test, rapid urease test) and defined as positive when two of three tests were positive. RESULTS: Of 50 patients, 31 patients were diagnosed as H. pylori positive and 15 patients were negative. The RAPIRUN test was positive in 24 of 31 patients (sensitivity 77.4%) and negative in 13 of 15 patients (specificity 86.7%). The HpSA test was positive in 25 of 31 patients (sensitivity 80.1%) and negative in 14 of 15 patients (specificity 93.3%). CONCLUSIONS: The accuracies of H. pylori urine antibody and stool antigen test are similar to those of Western studies. These two tests are found to be useful methods for diagnosis of H. pylori infection in Korea.

Keyword

Helicobacter pylori; Urine antibody test; Stool antigen test

MeSH Terms

Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Antibodies, Bacterial/*urine
Antigens, Bacterial/*analysis
Feces/*microbiology
Female
Gastroscopy
Helicobacter Infections/*diagnosis
Helicobacter pylori/*immunology
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Predictive Value of Tests
Reagent Kits, Diagnostic
Sensitivity and Specificity
Stomach Diseases/*diagnosis/microbiology