Association Between Patients' Immunoglobulin E Levels and Difficulty Eradicating Helicobacter pylori

Background: Helicobacter pylori is a cause of gastric cancer, and thus the eradication of this bacterium is very important. The success rate of primary eradication has been dramatically increased by the introduction of potassium-competitive acid blockers. However, H. pylori cannot be eradicated in all patients, and the contributing factors need to be clarified. Aim: Because allergy status may be a factor and considering research linking hay fever with eradication failure, the purpose of this study was to examine blood immunoglobulin E levels as a contributing factor in patients who were unable to eradicate H. pylori in a single eradication treatment and who underwent multiple eradication attempts. Methods: Questionnaire data were collected from 250 patients who visited the Department of Gastroenterology, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, for H. pylori eradication. In addition, non-specific IgE levels in the blood were measured and analyzed with one-way analysis of variance. Multinomial logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the association between the number of eradication attempts and the IgE level (< 500 vs >= 500 IU/mL). Results: The mean IgE values were 188.4, 211.9, and 744.0 IU/mL in patients with one, two, and three or more eradication attempts, respectively (P < 0.05). The results of multinomial logistic regression analysis showed that attempting eradication three or more times was significantly associated with high levels of IgE, even after consideration of antibiotic sensitivity. Conclusion: H. pylori eradication was less likely in patients with high IgE. It is thus necessary to study the appropriate regimen for patients with high IgE levels.