Selenium plasma levels in children with Helicobacter pylori-associated diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract

Abstract

Despite the success of the treatment of infected individuals, Helicobacter pylori infection remains the most common human bacterial pathogen, infecting half of the world’s population. In a large part of people, H. pylori causes gastroduodenal diseases, in particular, chronic antral gastritis and ulcer disease. The possible role of selenium in the course of chronic inflammatory H. pylori-associated pathology of the upper gastrointestinal tract in children has not yet been fully investigated and understood. The aim is to determine selenium plasma levels in children with Helicobacter pylori-associated diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract. Materials and methods. The study included 135 school-age children with Helicobacter pylori-associated diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract, who made up the main study group (55 children with chronic gastritis (CG), 57 children with chronic gastroduodenitis (CGD), 23 children with duodenal ulcer (DU), and 20 practically healthy age-matched children were the comparison group. Quantitative measurements of plasma selenium were performed using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MS-ICP) on an Optima 2000 DV spectrometer (Perkin Elmer, USA). Results. The lowest level of plasma selenium was registered in children with H. pylori-negative DU (67.81 ± 2.67 μg/l), while in children with H. pylori-associated DU, its level was higher – 73.56 ± 2.34 μg/l (p < 0.05), however, it did not reach the level in children of the comparison group. A similar direction of changes in the selenium plasma concentration was observed in children with CGD: higher levels of selenium were detected in children with H. pylori-positive CGD compared to H. pylori-negative CGD (75.61 ± 2.48 μg/l and 70.99 ± 2.31 μg/l, respectively, p < 0.05). Conclusions. Significantly lower levels of plasma selenium in children with chronic destructive-inflammatory diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract were found, which could be explained by the acute phase of inflammation in the mucous membrane of the stomach and duodenum resulting in a decrease in selenium absorption. In H. pylori-positive children, the level of selenium was significantly higher compared to H. pylori-negative children indicating a possible role of selenium in the pathogenesis and further progression of H. pylori-associated diseases.