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OBJECTIVE: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection with concurrent Schistosoma mansoni infestation has emerged as a major cause of chronic liver disease and liver cirrhosis. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of HCV among bilharzia patients. METHODS: The study was conducted at the Viral Diagnostic and Parasitology Departments, Regional Laboratory and Blood Bank, Dammam, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia from August 1999 to July 2000. Sera from a total of 405 patients, including 356 Saudi nationals and 49 non-Saudis, who had a clinical suspicion of bilharziasis were tested, using enzyme linked immunosorbent assay for HCV infection and indirect hemagglutination tests for Schistosoma infestation. Diagnosis of schistosomiasis was made when serum anti-schistosoma antibody titer was either equal to or more than 1:256. RESULTS: A total of 39 cases out of 405 tested positive for bilharzia antibodies comprising of 22 (44.9%) non-Saudi and 17 (4.8%) Saudi individuals. Among these patients 7(17.9%) were found to have evidence of HCV infection. Of the 7 patients tested positive for HCV antibodies, there were 4 (26.7%) Egyptians, 2 (11.8%) Saudis and one (14.3%) Middle-Eastern. CONCLUSION: Our data shows that a good proportion (17.9%) of patients with bilharziasis had HCV infection. The percentage positive for HCV antibody were 26.7% in Egyptians, which is higher when compared to other nationals and Saudis.
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Hepatitis C/epidemiología , Esquistosomiasis/epidemiología , Adolescente , Adulto , Comorbilidad , Egipto/etnología , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Medio Oriente/etnología , Arabia Saudita/epidemiología , Estudios SeroepidemiológicosRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) was identified in dental plaque, raising the possibility of future gastritis and peptic ulceration. OBJECTIVE: This trial was to study the association between presence of H. pylori in dental plaque and in the stomachs of patients with gastritis; the effect of oral hygiene and periodontal condition on the stomach. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Seventy-five Saudi adult dyspeptic patients, together with 60 healthy persons as control. Two samples of dental plaque were taken from gingival crevice of deepest pocket. One sample was kept in Christensen's urea agar and incubated for H. pylori detection by rapid urease test. The second sample was kept in 5% sheep blood agar, chocolate agar and a selective medium to culture the H. pylori. Gastric urease test was done for the same patients. RESULTS: (1) Plaque urease test results showed 89% positive patients. (2) Dental plaque Index:- Mild dental plaque accumulation in 24%, moderate in 41%, while severe accumulation was in 35% of the patients. (3) Gingival Index: Showed mild, moderate and severe gingivitis in 17%, 48% and 35% of patients, respectively. (4) Community periodontal index of treatment needs (CPITN): Showed gingivitis, mild periodontitis and moderate periodontitis in 50%, 23% and 27% of patients, respectively. (5)Gastric urease results: 87% of patients were positive. (6)All cultured samples results were negative CONCLUSION: The ability to detect H. pylori in dental plaque samples offers a potential for a noninvasive test for gastric infection and would lend support for oral spread of H. pylori as the princi-pal mode of transmission. However, the presence of H. pylori in dental plaque and in the stomach (in gastritis patients) could permit not only a target for therapeutic procedures but also a monitor-ing tool for the efficacy of therapy.
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