Helicobacter pylori in South America: Epidemiology, Diagnosis and Treatment

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In most South American countries, H. pylori infection prevalence is high, affecting over 70% in populations with precarious living conditions. Due to poor sanitation and low standards of living conditions, the infection is acquired in early childhood. Also, it is estimated that gastric cancer, the main clinical sequela of H. pylori infection, has an average incidence rate of 12.4 cases per 100,000 inhabitants (8.4 cases per 100,000 inhabitants for women and 17.3 cases per 100,000 for men) in the continent. It is worth pointing out that there is initial evidence of a decline in prevalence of H. pylori infection in some more privileged fragments of the population. The chapter also review the main methods used to diagnosis H. pylori infection and their results in South America setting. The management of the infection including anti-H. pylori drugs, therapeutic regimes, eradication control, bacterial resistance, relapse and reinfection, and therapy failure is outlined.