Helicobacter pylori

Abstract

Helicobacter pylori, a corkscrew-shaped, gram-negative rod, resides in the mucous layer of the human stomach. Unrecognized until the 1980s, the organism is extraordinarily common, infecting at least half of the world's population. Once acquired, infection persists chronically, typically continuing in the stomach throughout the host's life. H. pylori infection invariably causes acute and chronic gastric inflammation, but in only a minority of cases does it result in overt clinical disease. Yet, the diseases attributed to H. pylori infection, peptic ulcer disease and gastric malignancy, are among the world's most important causes of morbidity and mortality in adults. For this reason, the past 30 years have borne witness to furious activity concerning diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of this recently rediscovered pathogen. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2009.