Helicobacter pylori Diagnostic Tests Used in Europe: Results of over 34,000 Patients from the European Registry on Helicobacter pylori Management
Natalia García‐Morales, Ángeles Pérez‐Aísa, Giulia Fiorini, Bojan Tepeš, Manuel Castro‐Fernández, Alfredo J. Lucendo, Irina Voynovan, Luís Bujanda, Ana Garre, Luı́s Rodrigo, Samuel J. Martínez‐Domínguez, Maja Denkovski, José María Huguet, Laimas Virginijus Jonaitis, Renāte Būmane, O V Zaytsev, Pilar Mata Romero, Jésus Barrio, Luis Fernández‐Salazar, А. С. Сарсенбаева, Inmaculada Ortiz Polo, С. А. Алексеенко, Ilaria Maria Saracino, Dino Vaira, Alma Keco‐Huerga, Д.С. Бордин, Antonio Gasbarrini, Frode Lerang, Theodore Rokkas, Juozas Kupčinskas, Mārcis Leja, Gülüstan Babayeva, Ricardo Marcos Pinto, Ante Tonkić, Sinéad M. Smith, Perminder Phull, György Miklós Buzás, Halis Simsek, Doron Boltin, Oleksiy Gridnyev, Marino Venerito, Vladimir Milivojević, Núria Torà, Anna Cano‐Català, Leticia Moreira, Olga P. Nyssen, Françis Mégraud, Colm O’Morain, Javier P. Gisbert, Ignasi Puig, on behalf of Hp-EuReg Investigators
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: infection. Our objective was to evaluate the tests used for both the initial diagnosis and the confirmation of eradication after treatment in Europe. METHODS: -infected patients in Europe. Countries with at least 100 cases registered from June 2013 to April 2021, and with a validated diagnostic method were analysed. Data were quality reviewed. RESULTS: A total of 34,920 adult patients from 20 countries were included (mean age 51 years; 61% women). To establish the initial diagnosis, invasive tests were performed in 19,801 (71%) patients, non-invasive in 11,369 (41%), and both in 3437 (12%). The most frequent were histology (n = 11,885; 43%), a rapid urease test (n = 10,636; 38%) and an urea breath test (n = 7577; 27%). According to the age, invasive tests were indicated in 11,179 (77%) ≥50 years, and in 8603 (65%) <50 years. Depending on the country, the use of invasive tests ranged from 29-99% in <50 years to 60-99% in ≥50. Most of the tests used to confirm eradication were non-invasive (n = 32,540; 93%), with the urea breath test being the most frequent (n = 32,540; 78%). In 2983 (9%) post-treatment tests, histology (n = 1887; 5%) or a rapid urease test (n = 1223; 4%) were performed. CONCLUSION: A great heterogeneity was observed for the initial diagnosis and confirmation of the eradication. The reasons for the apparent lack of adherence to the clinical guidelines should be further explored.