Systematic review with meta-analysis: the global recurrence rate of Helicobacter pylori

Background: Up-to-date information regarding the recurrence rate of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) after eradication therapy is not available.

Aim: To evaluate the global recurrence rate following H. pylori eradication therapy and confirm its association with socioeconomic and sanitary conditions.

Methods: A systematic search of PubMed, EMBASE and the Cochrane library was performed to identify potentially relevant publications using the following keywords: "Helicobacter pylori" or "H. pylori" or "Hp" and "recurrence" or "recrudescence" or "reinfection" or "recurrent" or "recurred" or "re-infect*" or "relapse*."

Results: A total of 132 studies (53 934 patient-years) were analysed. Each study was weighted according to the duration of patient-years. The global annual recurrence, reinfection and recrudescence rate of H. pylori were 4.3% (95% CI, 4-5), 3.1% (95% CI, 2-5) and 2.2% (95% CI, 1-3), respectively. The H. pylori recurrence rate was inversely related to the human development index (HDI) (ie, 3.1% [95% CI, 2-4], 6.2% [95% CI, 4-8] and 10.9% [95% CI, 6-18] in countries with a very high, high and medium or low HDI) (P <.01) and directly related to H. pylori prevalence (10.9% [95% CI, 7-16], 3.7% [95% CI, 3-5], 3.4% [95% CI, 2-5] and 1.6% [95% CI, 0.5-3] in countries with a very high, high, medium or low local H. pylori prevalence) (P <.01). Global recurrence rates remained relatively stable between 1990s, 2000s and 2010s but varied across different regions (P <.05).

Conclusions: H. pylori recurrence remains a problem closely associated with socioeconomic and sanitary conditions. Methods to reduce recurrence in developing countries are needed.