EFFECT OF HELICOBACTER PYLORI ERADICATIONON THE PATHOGENESIS OF MINIMAL HEPATIC ENCEPHALOPATHY IN EGYPTIAN PATIENTS WITH LIVER CIRRHOSIS

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Tropical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt.

2 Department of Clinical Pathology2, Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt.

Abstract

Hepatic encephalopathy is one of the complications of liver cirrhosis. Ammonia is implicated as a precipitating factor for HE, minimal hepatic encephalopathy cannot be detected clinically and impairs quality of life, indicated that H. pylori infection is associated with high blood ammonia levels by urease enzyme and can lead to causation of HE. This study evaluated the effect of H. pylori eradication therapy on MHE. A total of 60 cirrhotic patients were selected from al-Hussein University Hospital. They were GI: 30 patients with MHE and GII; 30 patients without MHE. All patients were subjected to H. pylori stool antigen and blood ammonia level. Positive H. pylori patients received triple therapy for 14 days, then 4 weeks later were revaluated regarding, H. pylori stool antigen, serum ammonia level and NCT. Helicobacter pylori infection was found 63.3% of GI versus 40% in GII; serum ammonia levels were significantly higher in patients with GI and H. pylori positive. Treatment was successful in 78.9% of GI patients versus 89.4% of GII. Number connection test and serum ammonia level were significantly improved in GI patients and positive H. pylori after eradication therapy.

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