Protective effect of oral contraceptive against Helicobacter pylori infection in US adult females: NHANES 1999–2000

• Published in: Epidemiology and infection 2021-04, Vol.149, p.e120, Article e120
• Main Authors: Fong, P., Wang, Q. T.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Alcohol; Anti-Bacterial Agents - therapeutic use; Antibodies, Bacterial - blood; Birth control; Bivariate analysis; Blood levels; Body mass index; Cadmium; Caffeine; Chi-square test; Confidence intervals; Contraceptives; Contraceptives, Oral - therapeutic use; Cross-Sectional Studies; Databases, Factual; Datasets; Drinking water; Drugs; Education; Estrogens; Female; Helicobacter Infections - epidemiology; Helicobacter Infections - prevention & control; Helicobacter pylori; Helicobacter pylori - drug effects; Helicobacter pylori - immunology; Humans; IgG antibody; Immunoassays; Immunoglobulin G; Immunoglobulin G - blood; Infections; Interviews; Laboratories; Middle Aged; Nutrition; Odds Ratio; Oral contraceptives; Original Paper; Overweight; Population studies; Poverty; Regression analysis; Secondary schools; Seroepidemiologic Studies; Serology; Smoking; Statistical analysis; Statistical tests; United States - epidemiology; Water treatment; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0950-2688; 1469-4409; 1469-4409
• DOI: 10.1017/S0950268821000923

Recently, the antibacterial properties of oestrogen and progestogen were discovered. The aim of this study was to find the cross-sectional association between oral contraceptive use and Helicobacter pylori seroprevalence. Data were obtained from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The H. pylori immunoglobulin G (IgG) enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were used to categorise participants as seropositive or seronegative. The study population included 799 female participants who had information on H. pylori seroprevalence and all other covariates and had not been taking any medications (except oral contraceptives). The bivariate Rao–Scott chi-square test indicated a significant association between H. pylori seroprevalence and contraceptive use (P < 0.01). The variables of race, education, poverty income ratio, smoking, and blood lead and cadmium levels were also significantly associated with H. pylori seroprevalence (P < 0.01). Multiple logistic regression analysis of the age-adjusted model revealed that contraceptive users are 65% less likely of being H. pylori seropositive as compared to non-contraceptive users (odds ratio (OR): 0.35, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.18–0.68). This association is stronger with the final multivariate model (OR: 0.46, 95% CI: 0.23–0.89). Conclusions: This finding reveals the potential protective effect of oral contraceptives against H. pylori infection and serves as a foundation study for further investigations.