Поширеність інфекції Helicobacter pylori серед дітей із патологією травного тракту в Україні: систематичний огляд та метааналіз

The prevalence of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection varies across populations and geographic regions. However, a comprehensive review of prevalence in Ukraine has not been conducted. The objective: to estimate the pooled prevalence of H. pylori among children and to identify factors associated with H. pylori infection in Ukraine. Materials and methods. We performed a search in the databases PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Ukrainian electronic resources including the electronic libraries of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine published between 1999–2024. The synthesis included the articles that had information on the prevalence of H. pylori among the pediatric population of Ukraine, studies with valid methods for diagnosing H. pylori. Results. The final analysis included 9 publications with a total number of participants of 1,113 children. All articles contained information on the prevalence of H. pylori in children with gastroenterological complaints. The overall prevalence of H. pylori was 53.22% (95% confidence interval (42.28; 64.02)). Meta-regression analysis did not establish differences in the prevalence of H. pylori in children depending on age (p > 0.05), the year of publication (p = 0.713), and the sample size (p = 0.756). When dividing the studies into geographical regions where they were conducted, we established a trend (p=0.06), which indicates that among children from the eastern region of Ukraine, the prevalence of H. pylori may be slightly higher. Conclusions. Our meta-analysis showed that the prevalence of H. pylori among children with gastrointestinal complaints in Ukraine is high and exceeds the global and European averages for the general pediatric population. Of course, direct comparison with studies of the general population is less accurate, but our data are relevant in a clinical context. The lack of data on the prevalence of H. pylori among the general pediatric population in Ukraine emphasizes the need for further research, in particular taking into account socio-economic and hygiene factors.