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World J Gastroenterol. Jul 21, 2014; 20(27): 8979-8985
Published online Jul 21, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i27.8979
Published online Jul 21, 2014. doi: 10.3748/wjg.v20.i27.8979
Helicobacter pylori: Friend or foe?
Stephen David Howard Malnick, Department of Internal Medicine C, Kaplan Medical Center, 76100 Rehovot, Israel
Ehud Melzer, Gabriel Duek, Gastroenterology Institute, Kaplan Medical Center, 76100 Rehovot, Israel
Malka Attali, Department of Internal Medicine B, Kaplan Medical Center, 76100 Rehovot, Israel
Jacob Yahav, Kaplan Medical Center, Affiliated to the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, 76100 Rehovot, Israel
Author contributions: Malnick SDH developed the concept and wrote the manuscript; Melzer E, Attali M and Duek G developed the theme and researched the literature; Yahav J contributed to the writing and revision of the manuscript, in addition to developing the concept.
Correspondence to: Stephen David Howard Malnick, Director, Department of Internal Medicine C, Kaplan Medical Center, PO Box 1, 76100 Rehovot, Israel. stephen@malnick.net
Telephone: +97-289-441371 Fax: +97-289-441852
Received: September 24, 2013
Revised: January 23, 2014
Accepted: April 21, 2014
Published online: July 21, 2014
Revised: January 23, 2014
Accepted: April 21, 2014
Published online: July 21, 2014
Core Tip
Core tip:Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is found in more than half the world’s population. It is a major cause of peptic ulcer disease and gastric carcinoma. The overwhelming majority of those infected will not suffer any consequences during their lifetime. Furthermore, there may be a beneficial effect of H. pylori infection on allergy and asthma in young children and a protection against gastroesophageal reflux disease and its feared complication of esophageal carcinoma. Universal eradication will be prohibitively expensive, have adverse effects and needs to be evaluated on the basis of robust clinical data that is not yet available.