![Sample our Medicine, Dentistry, Nursing & Allied Health journals, sign in here to start your FREE access for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5944/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Medicine-Dentistry-Nursing-Allied-Health.jpg"})
Abstract
Background: The ‘test and treat’ strategy for Helicobacter pylori is recommended in dyspeptic patients under 55 years of age with no alarm symptoms. Reliable non‐invasive tests are therefore needed. The aim of this study was to assess the pre‐ and post‐treatment accuracy of a low dose (1 μCi [37kBq]), short collecting time [ 14 C]‐UBT (urea breath test) in diagnosing H pylori infection, examining different methods to analyse the best cut‐off points. Methods: The study included 119 patients. Endoscopy and [ 14 C]‐UBT were performed in the pre‐ and post‐treatment setting. [ 14 C]‐UBT results were expressed in three different ways: 1) the measured disintegrations per minute (dpm) at sample time, 2) the difference (D) in dpm between sample time and the dpm at T 0 , 3) the ratio of dpm at sample time to dpm at T 0 . Results: Seventy‐six out of the 119 patients (63.9%; 95% CI: 54.9 to 71.9) were infected. Seventy‐three (96%) patients completed the follow‐up. The most accurate results in both pre‐ (sensitivity 95.9%; specificity 97.7%) and post‐treatment (sensitivity 90.9%; specificity 100%) were obtained using the difference (D) in dpm between sample time at T 0 and at T 12.5 . Conclusion: A low dose [ 14 C]‐UBT, with a short collecting time, is a reliable method to evaluate H. pylori infection in both the pre‐ and post‐treatment setting.