Association between Helicobacter pylori Infection and Iron Deficiency Anemia in School-aged Iranian Children

ABSTRACT

Objective: To find the relationship between Helicobacter pylori infection and iron deficiencyanemia in school-aged children. Methods: 71children with dyspepsia, epigastric and vagueabdominal pain attending a tertiary medical center in Iran underwent upper gastrointestinalendoscopy and were investigated for H. Pylori infection. Hemoglobin, mean corpuscularvolume (MCV), serum ferritin, total iron binding capacity (TIBC) and serum iron levels werecompared between children with or without H. pylori infection. Results: H. pylori infection wasdetected in 42 (59.1%) patients. Proportion of children with iron deficiency anemia was notstatistically different between two groups (26.2% vs. 14.3%; P=0.48). While hemoglobin wassignificantly lower in children with H. pylori infection (P=0.01), there were no significantdifferences in serum level of ferritin, iron, mean corpuscular volume and total iron bindingcapacity. Conclusion: Presence of H. pylori does not seem to play an important role in thepathophysiology and development of iron deficiency anemia in school-aged Iranianpopulation