Helicobacter pylori infection in the United States beyond NHANES: a scoping review of seroprevalence estimates by racial and ethnic groups

Abstract

Gastric cancer in the United States is characterised by marked racial and ethnic disparities. Widespread declines in Helicobacter pylori prevalence have contributed to declining gastric cancer incidence. However, H pylori prevalence shows the same persistent racial and ethnic disparities seen in gastric cancer. The most recent population estimates of H pylori prevalence in the United States are from the late 1990s and early 2000s and only include three specific racial and ethnic groups. We conducted a scoping review to supplement existing population estimates and assess H pylori seroprevalence trends over by age and birth cohort with available data. We found the extant data suggest considerable variation in H pylori prevalence between racial and ethnic groups in the United States and evidence that age and birth cohort trends may differ between groups. We also found that the extant data were limited in generalizability and insufficient to describe trends in many cases.