How is it used?
This test is used to diagnose infection due to
Helicobacter pylori.
A positive test for
H. pylori indicates that your gastrointestinal pain may be caused by due to a
peptic ulcer this
bacterium. Taking antibiotics will kill the bacteria and may stop the pain and the ulceration.
Sometimes, a test for H. pylori may be ordered to determine if treatment with antibiotics was effective. However, the blood antibody test cannot be used for this purpose since antibodies to H. pylori may persist even after an infection is resolved.
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When is it ordered?
If you experiencing gastrointestinal pain and symptoms of an
ulcer, your doctor may order one of the
H. pylori tests to determine if there is evidence of this disease. Some of these symptoms may include:
indigestion,
feeling of fullness or bloating,
nausea, and
belching and regurgitation.
These tests may also be ordered after you finish taking the prescribed antibiotics to prove that the H. pylori bacteria are gone from your body. A follow-up test is not performed on every patient.
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What does the test result mean?
A positive
H. pylori test,
antibody,
antigen, or breath test signifies that you have been infected with this organism. In recent years, scientific data support that this
bacteria causes
stomach ulcers and appropriate treatment can destroy the bacteria and stop the disease.
A negative blood antibody or stool antigen test may mean that you are not infected. However, if your symptoms persist, you doctor may order the more invasive tissue biopsy to more conclusively rule out infection.
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Is there anything else I should know?
People have gastrointestinal pain for many reasons an ulcer caused by
H. pylori is only one.
If a patient uses antacids within the week prior to testing, the rapid urease test may be falsely negative. Antimicrobials, proton pump inhibitors, and bismuth preparations may interfere with all but the blood antibody test.
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