ABSTRACT
Objective:To investigate the prevalence and the risk factors of Helicobacter pylori( H. pylori) infection in Qinghai Province with a multi-center cross-sectional study. Methods:From May to December in 2021, stratified sampling was conducted in Xining City, Haidong agricultural district, Hainan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Haibei Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture and Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture by 20 centers, including the Affiliated Hospital of Qinghai University, Qinghai Red Cross Hospital and Qinghai Renji Hospital, etc. A questionnaire survey was carried out among the individuals undergoing routine health checkups. The questionnaire included general information, lifestyle and family history, etc. 13C-urea breath test was performed to diagnose H. pylori infection. Chi-square test, trend Chi-square test, segmentation method and multivariate logistic regression analysis were performed for statistical analysis. Results:The infection rate of H. pylori in Qinghai area was 53.6% (2 531/4 724). The age distribution of infection was statistically significant ( χ2=15.95, P=0.007), the infection rate in individuals aged 15 to<30 was higher than that of individuals aged 60 to< 75 (57.6%, 626/1 086 vs.49.5%, 231/467), and the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=8.83, P=0.003). With the increase of age, the infection rate decreased in female over 30 years old ( χ2trend=5.89, P=0.015). There were statistically significant differences in H. pylori infection rate among different ethnic groups ( χ2=28.13, P<0.001); the infection rate of Tibetan population was higher than that of Han population (62.9%, 313/498 vs. 51.5%, 1 804/3 503), and the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=22.56, P<0.001). The H. pylori infection rate in people living at an altitude >3 500 m was higher than that of people living at an altitude between 1 500 m and 3 500 m (61.8%, 327/529 vs. 52.5%, 2 204/4 195), and the difference was statistically significant ( χ2=16.25, P<0.001). Compared with those without corresponding habits, the infection rate of H. pylori was higher in smokers (62.1%, 1 081/1 740 vs. 48.6%, 1 450/2 984), in people who had the habit of eating hand grabbed mutton (55.4%, 967/1 744 vs. 52.5%, 1 564/2 980), raw garlic (55.5%, 968/1 744 vs. 52.4%, 1 563/2 980), spicy food (55.6%, 1 471/2 647 vs. 51.0%, 1 060/2 077), sweet food (55.2%, 1 187/2 149 vs. 52.2%, 1 344/2 575), the infection rate of tea drinkers was lower (50.5%, 1 135/2 247 vs. 56.4%, 1 396/2 477), and the differences were statistically significant ( χ2=80.94, 3.89, 9.63, 4.36, 4.13 and 16.19, all P<0.05). The results of logistic regression analysis indicated that Tibetan ( OR=1.379, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.120 to 1.699), the Hui people ( OR=1.362, 95% CI 1.117 to 1.662), living at an altitude over 3 500 m ( OR=1.355, 95% CI 1.107 to 1.657), smoking ( OR=1.847, 95% CI 1.629 to 2.094), and spicy food ( OR=1.224, 95% CI 1.084 to 1.382) were independent risk factors of H. pylori infection (all P<0.05). Conclusions:The infection rate of H. pylori in Qinghai Province is higher than the average level in inland China. The infection rate of people with different ages, nationalities, altitudes of residence, occupations, living and eating habits were different. The infection rate of female over 30 years old is decreasing year by year. The infection risk is high in Hui people and Tibetan, spicy food lovers, smokers and people living at an altitude >3 500 m.