Helicobacter Forums

I've just received my test results for H. pylori and it came back with a reading of 2490. My GP said its very high, in fact she said it the highest she has ever seen. Interestingly I have been tested for HP 14 months ago and the reading was around 500. I didn't treat as I was 5 weeks pregnant at the time. So over the last 14 months it increased by 5 times. Can anybody provide any information/explanation what it can be attributed to? What are the dangers having such a high level of bacteria?
Also, I have a 5 months old baby and I wonder how it can affect him.
I would appreciate any information. Thank you

what is the unit? dpm or cpm?

nevertheless, the level of the reading has no proven correlation to severity. But, it does correlate to bacteria load. It simply mean that you have a lot of H. pylori in your stomach. We have seen a lot of cases where patients come in with sky rocket UBT reading but no ulcer and no cancer. So, you dont have to worry too much about it.

is H. pylori harmful to your baby? tough question. more and more people starting to believe that H. pylori provide some sort of immune stimulation to young children. In US, a study has shown that children with H. pylori infection are less likely to develop asthma and other allergy. Some even claim that H. pylori prevent children obesity.

So, I think you dont have to stress too much if your child will be infected. Just get yourself treated.

I was told I was 'high' too (blood test); as to how high, I don't know. I am not sure what it correlates to, but I was really sick. I felt like my insides were melting from the burning. However, unlike like other people, I didn't have nausea. I am going through the same thing you are: I have a 3 year old at home. As bad as I was I would be horrified if my son got it. The only thing I can do is get treated myself and take a retest to make sure it's gone.

Just want to comment on the count from blood test. The result from the blood test does not correlate to the bacteria load. It only measures how much immune response your body produce against such infection. However, with a more sensitive blood test, it is possible to tell if your infection is a new infection (within a few weeks) or an old infection (more than a few months or years ago) you are having.

Hi Helico_expert:
My doctor gave me the blood test, she says, that would be more likely to detect a current infection... However, maybe what she meant was that she gave me a test to show a recent infection, from reading your comment above... It was a H Pylori AB IGM test that she gave me. Is that the kind of sensitive test you mentioned in the above comment? I have read there are 3 kinds of blood tests: IgA, IgG, IgM.. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2725530/ I read in this article that IgM is the least sensitive of all of the blood tests. I am not sure why she chose this one over the others. I think that many doctors in the USA may not know which tests are the best ones to use, as she scheduled me for a follow up blood test of the same type for after my antibiotic treatment, which I know is not correct. Which one is the blood test you are speaking of that shows a more recent infection? Thank you.

you are right. You can use IgM to detect recent infection. However, I doubt you'll find any IgM, unless you have previous negative blood test result. I believe almost everyone had their infection during their childhood.

I'm not sure how "high" I was informed I was after a blood test, though. I'm not sure how that relates, but I was quite ill. The heat made me feel as though my insides were dissolving. But unlike other folks, I did not have nausea. Having a three-year-old at home is exactly what I am going through. Even worse than I was, I would be appalled if my son understood. Getting treated and doing another test to confirm it's gone is the only thing I can do.  bitlife