Brief Article
Copyright ©2010 Baishideng. All rights reserved.
World J Gastroenterol. Feb 21, 2010; 16(7): 886-896
Published online Feb 21, 2010. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v16.i7.886
Does Helicobacter pylori infection play a role in iron deficiency anemia? A meta-analysis
Xin-Hua Qu, Xiao-Lu Huang, Ping Xiong, Cui-Ying Zhu, You-Liang Huang, Lun-Gen Lu, Xu Sun, Lan Rong, Liang Zhong, Da-Yu Sun, Hai Lin, Ming-Ci Cai, Zhi-Wei Chen, Bing Hu, Lian-Ming Wu, Yi-Bin Jiang, Wei-Li Yan
Xin-Hua Qu, Xiao-Lu Huang, Cui-Ying Zhu, Ming-Ci Cai, Zhi-Wei Chen, Bing Hu, Lian-Ming Wu, Wei-Li Yan, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200127, China
Ping Xiong, Shanghai No. 9 People’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200011, China
You-Liang Huang, Department of Cellular and Integrative Physiology, Indian University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202-5120, United States
Lun-Gen Lu, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Diseases, Shanghai 200001, China
Xu Sun, Lan Rong, Liang Zhong, Da-Yu Sun, Yi-Bin Jiang, Department of Gastroenterology, Huashan Hospital affiliated to Fudan University, Shanghai 200040, China
Hai Lin, Shanghai Health Development Research Center, Shanghai 200040, China
Author contributions: Qu XH, Huang XL, Xiong P and Zhu CY contributed equally to this work; Qu XH, Huang XL, Xiong P, Zhu CY, Jiang YB and Yan WL designed the research; Qu XH, Huang XL, Cai MC, Chen ZW, Hu B and Wu LM performed the research; Qu XH, Huang XL, Xiong P, Lu LG, Sun X; Rong L, Zhong L, Sun DY, Lin H collected data; Qu XH, Huang XL, Xiong P, Zhu CY and Lu LG analyzed the data; Qu XH, Huang XL, Xiong P, Huang YL, Lu LG and Yan WL wrote the paper.
Supported by (in part) The National Natural Science Foundation of China, No. 30770599; China Postdoctoral Science Foundation, No. 2005038143; Shanghai Municipal Education Commission, No. 09YZ82 and Shanghai Leading Academic Discipline Project, No. S30203
Correspondence to: Wei-Li Yan, Associate Professor, Renji Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, 1630 Dongfang Road, Shanghai 200127, China. wl_yan67@126.com
Telephone: +86-21-26370067   Fax: +86-21-58394262
Received: November 23, 2009
Revised: December 22, 2009
Accepted: December 29, 2009
Published online: February 21, 2010
Abstract

AIM: To perform a meta-analysis of observational studies and randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the association between Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) and iron deficiency anemia (IDA).

METHODS: A defined search strategy was used to search Medline, Embase, the Cochrane Library, Clinical Trials, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Premedline and Healthstar. Odds ratio (OR) was used to evaluate observational epidemiology studies, and weighted mean difference (WMD) was used to demonstrate the difference between control and intervention groups.

RESULTS: Fifteen observational studies and 5 RCTs were identified and used for calculation. The pooled OR for observational studies was 2.22 (95% CI: 1.52-3.24, P < 0.0001). The WMD for hemoglobin (HB) was 4.06 g/L (95% CI: -2.57-10.69, P = 0.01), and the WMD for serum ferritin (SF) was 9.47 μg/L (95% CI: -0.50-19.43, P < 0.0001). Results were heterogeneous for all comparisons.

CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis on observational studies suggests an association between H. pylori and IDA. In RCTs, eradication of H. pylori can improve HB and SF levels but not significantly.

Keywords: Helicobacter pylori, Iron-deficiency anemia, Meta-analysis, Hemoglobins, Odds ratio