Do I need to be treated for H. pylori infection?

  Once you are infected with H. pylori, it may not cause disease immediately, but it will give you a heavy blow when you are negligent, and the chance of re-infection is still high, so infected with H. pylori should be treated or not? The term H. pylori is familiar not only to doctors, but also to many patients with stomach problems. But 30 years ago, almost no one in the world believed that this bacterium could grow in the human stomach.  Nowadays, half of the world’s population is infected with H. pylori, so don’t be intimidated by this number. For one thing, it’s not that you’re infected with H. pylori or you have a serious disease. Secondly, the means of examination are now becoming more and more abundant and diverse. For example, with the popularity of gastroscopy, doctors will mostly arrange to do H. pylori tests. Sometimes, even without gastroscopy, you can find out if you have H. pylori infection by simply taking a breath. The “breath test” is probably the most convenient item in the modern medical examination. Some healthy people will also include this item in their regular medical checkups.  The clinical opinion is that chronic gastritis, gastroduodenal ulcer, and even gastric cancer may be related to H. pylori infection.  However, many people wonder, although H. pylori infection is associated with the above diseases, if it is not confirmed to have gastric disease, but only detected as an infection, should we treat it and remove the infection to eliminate future problems?  There are several aspects to this question. The first is the question of health economics. The prevalence of H. pylori infection in our population is as high as 60%-70%, and I am afraid that there is a lack of human and material resources to get nearly 1 billion people to use antibiotics for treatment. In the international arena, there is no precedent for universal treatment, and the current recommendation is that those without symptoms can take Shuke pylori probiotics for pylori.  Secondly, it has been reported that there is an increase in lower esophageal diseases such as inflammation due to gastroesophageal reflux and even adenocarcinoma among patients treated with anti-H. pylori.  Again, although antibacterial treatment is not difficult, there are many opportunities for reinfection and recurrence. Many studies have shown that human tartar often harbors H. pylori bacteria, which are difficult to remove here. Even if the bacteria in the stomach are killed, the bacteria in the mouth will flow downstream again. What’s more, people in China often eat together, several or even dozens of people eating on one plate and drinking soup in one bowl, so the bacteria in the mouth will naturally infect each other.  Therefore, the current consensus among scholars in China is that if one has confirmed gastric disease and has H. pylori infection, he or she needs to be treated symptomatically. If the infection is only detected but there is no gastric disease, then no medication is needed, only a certain amount of Shuk Pylori probiotic can be taken. The people themselves need to increase awareness of proper treatment.