Stomach Ulcers and Helicobacter Pylori

Helicobacter pylori is a common gram-negative microaerophilic (it requires oxygen) bacteria of the stomach and duodenum that can cause mild to significant inflammation and is strongly linked to several gastric tract cancers. The 2005 Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine was awarded to Drs. Robin Warren and Barry Marshall for their work that showed H. pylori could cause stomach ulcers, stomach cancer, and duodenal ulcers.

H. pylori occurs in one-half to two-thirds of the human population, primarily in the upper gastrointestinal tract. It is more prevalent in the developing world and is thought to be decreasing in the developed world. The method of transmission is unknown, but most people probably become infected in childhood, perhaps through food or water. It can form a nonculturable coccoid form ...