Background: The association between Helicobacter Pylori (H. pylori) infection and cardiovascular risk factors remains controversial. The high prevalence of H. pylori infection among Afghan patients facilitates to investigate this association. The aim of the present study was to determine the association between H. pylori infection and cardiovascular risk factors among patients visiting an outpatient clinic in Andkhoy, Afghanistan.
Materials and Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study of 271 consecutive patients in an outpatient clinic in Andkhoy, Afghanistan from April 2017 to June 2017. The diagnosis of H. pylori infection was achieved using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) test. The patients were divided into H. pylori positive (n=189) and H. pylori negative (n=82) groups. The association between H. pylori infection and cardiovascular risk factors was analyzed.
Results: Of the total 271 study participants, 102 (37.6%) were males and 169 (62.4%) were females. The mean age of the patients who were H. pylori-positive and H. pylori-negative was 51.0 ± 17.6 years and 51.6 ± 17.6 years, respectively. In multivariate logistic regression analyses, H. pylori infection was significantly associated with Diabetes mellitus (DM) (odds ratio [OR] 3.16, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.31-7.62, P = 0.011), BMI (body mass index) levels (OR 1.17, 95% CI 108-1.26, P < 0.001).
Conclusions
Our study indicated that H. pylori infection was significantly associated with DM and BMI levels in an outpatient clinic in Andkhoy, Afghanistan. More aggressive measures, including DM, obesity control, and H. pylori eradication should be needed.
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