Colonization of Helicobacter pylori in the gastric cardia: A comparison between the UFT300 and CLO tests.

Background and aim: To assess the detection rates of Helicobacter pylori colonization in the gastric cardia with two commercial kits of rapid urease test: 5 min UFT300 and 24 h CLO test in H. pylori-infected patients.

Methods: Eighty consecutive dyspeptic patients with confirmed H. pylori infection (serology and 13 C-urea breath test) were prospectively studied. During endoscopy, tissue samples using separate biopsy forceps from the cardia were taken for the UFT300 and CLO tests. The results of the UFT300 were read at 5 and 30 min, and those of the CLO test were read at 24 h.

Results: Of 80 enrolled patients, 17 (21.3%) and 44 (55%) had positive findings with the UFT300 at 5 and 30 min, respectively, while 72 (90%) had positive findings with the CLO test at 24 h. The CLO test is significantly more sensitive than the UFT300 in evaluating H. pylori status in the cardia. On comparing patients with and without carditis, the detection rates of the CLO test were similar (91.1% vs 88.6%; P = 0.724), and the rates of the UFT300 were also similar at 5 and 30 min.

Conclusions: The rate of H. pylori colonization in the gastric cardia was 90% in H. pylori-infected patients detected with the CLO test. Although the UFT300 provides a more rapid reading of H. pylori status, the diagnostic yield of the CLO test is much higher than that of the UFT300. However, a positive result of the UFT300 may indicate a higher bacterial load in the cardia, which warrants a more effective therapeutic strategy.