Rate of Helicobacter pylori acquisition in children and evidence of mother-child transmission in a Sub-Saharan setting.

Background: This study aims to assess age at which Helicobacter pylori infection is acquired and the role of maternal infection status in the transmission of this infection to children.

Research design and methods: This was a cross-sectional study conducted at the reference Pediatric Center in Cameroon for 8-months. A total of 204 children from birth to 5 years old and their mothers were enrolled. They were tested for the presence of H. pylori stool antigen. Information on sociodemographic and living conditions of children were collected using a structured questionnaire.

Results: H. pylori stool antigen positivity was 26.0 and 57.4% among children and their mothers respectively. Infection begins two weeks after birth and peaks at 36 to 60 months old (51.6%). The crude odd ratio for H. pylori infection in children whose mothers were infected was 7.0921(2.5510-19.6078; p = 0.0001). Mothers low-income level [2.8901(1.0319-8.0645), p = 0.043] and preschool attendance [6.7567(1.5337-30.3030), p = 0.012] were significantly correlated to H. pylori positivity in children.

Conclusions: Our finding showed that infected mothers and preschool attendance have a key role in intra-familial and extra-familial transmission of H. pylori infection among children in our milieu, that worse living conditions are the main risk factor for the contamination.