Helicobacter pylori infection and metabolic parameters: Is there an association in elderly population?

The association between Helicobacter pylori (HP),as one of the most prevalent infections, and serum glucoselevel was inconsistent with previous studies. Moreover, there arecontradictory reports about the relationship between HP infectionand lipid profile. The purpose of this study was to determine therelationship between HP infection with glycemic and lipid profilesin elderly people. This cross‑sectional study was conducted on 1,300 subjectsover 60 years in Amirkola Health and Ageing Project. After using astandard questionnaire, the venous sampling was done to determineFBS, triglyceride (TG), cholesterol, low density lipoprotein (LDL),high‑density lipoprotein (HDL) and IgG anti‑HP after a 12‑hovernight fast. The information about the individuals was analyzedusing SPSS‑17. The P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The prevalence of HP infection in diabetic andnondiabetic subjects was 77.5% and 75.7%, respectively, which hadno statistically significant difference. Also, there was no significantdifference between the serum lipid level including TG, LDL andHDL cholesterol with levels of anti‑HP antibodies. The rate ofHP infection in patients with hypertension was 75% and 78.3%in healthy patients, in which the difference was not statisticallysignificant. In terms of body mass index (BMI), the prevalenceof infection in the group with normal BMI was 77.3% and for theoverweight and obese elderly population, it was 74.7%, and 77.5%,respectively (P = 0.445). The findings revealed that in a large population of elderly in the northern part of Iran, HP infection is not associated with BMI, serum glucose and lipid profile as well as blood pressure.