AUTHOR=Di Jia , Ge Zhuang , Xie Qingwei , Kong Danfeng , Liu Sha , Wang Pengwei , Li Jie , Ning Ning , Qu Wei , Guo Rong , Chang Danyan , Zhang Jun , Zheng Xiang-hong 

TITLE=Helicobacter pylori infection increases the risk of thyroid nodules in adults of Northwest China

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology/articles/10.3389/fcimb.2023.1134520

DOI=10.3389/fcimb.2023.1134520

ISSN=2235-2988

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Background</title><p>Thyroid nodules (TNs) are very common in the adults of Northwest China. The role of <italic>Helicobacter pylori</italic> (<italic>H. pylori</italic>) infection in TNs is poorly investigated and even with controversial conclusions. Our study aimed at highlighting the relationship between <italic>H. pylori</italic> infection and the risk of TNs.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>9,042 individuals were enrolled with thyroid ultrasonography and <sup>14</sup>C-urea breath test (<sup>14</sup>C-UBT). Baseline characteristics and relevant covariates were obtained, including basic and laboratory indicators. After applying the exclusion criteria, 8,839 patients were included and divided into 2 groups: a cross-sectional study of single follow-up (<italic>n</italic>=8,711) and a retrospective cohort study of multiple follow-ups for 5 years (<italic>n</italic>=139).</p></sec><sec><title>Results</title><p>The prevalence of <italic>H. pylori</italic> infection and TNs was 39.58% and 47.94% in the adults of Northwest China, respectively. The prevalence of TNs was significantly higher among <italic>H. pylori</italic>-positive individuals than those without infection (52.55% vs. 44.92%, <italic>p</italic>&lt;0.01). The result of binary logistic regression revealed that the crude odds ratio (OR) was 1.624 (95% CI 1.242~2.123) in Model 1 without adjustment compared to <italic>H. pylori</italic>-negative group, and was also positive in Model 2, 3, and 4 (Model 2: OR=1.731, 95% CI 1.294~2.316; Model 3: OR=2.287, 95% CI 1.633~3.205; Model 4: OR=2.016, 95% CI 1.390~2.922) after the adjustment. The data of 5-year follow-up showed that the annual incidence of TNs was significantly higher in individuals with persistent <italic>H. pylori</italic> infection than non-infected counterparts (all <italic>p</italic>&lt;0.05).</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusions</title><p><italic>H. pylori</italic> is an independent risk factor for TNs in the adults of Northwest China.</p></sec>