Key Word(s): 1. Urea Breath Test; 2. Klacid resistance; 3. H.pylori eradication; 4. triple therapy; Presenting Author: HWONG RUEY LEOW Additional Authors: THERESAWAN CHEN YAP, AHMAD NAJIB AZMI, MUN ACP-196 order FAI LOKE, JAMUNARANI VADIVELU,

KHEAN LEE GOH Corresponding Author: HWONG RUEY LEOW Affiliations: Univeristy of Malaya; University of Malaya; Univeristy of Malaya; Univeristy of Malaya Objective: H. pylori infection rate is on the decline worldwide. This is particularly so amongst children and young adults where H. pylori has virtually disappeared in some populations. Although an endoscopy based time trend study from our institution has shown a marked decline in H. pylori infection, there has been no recent studies on the prevalence of H. pylori in a young Malaysian population. Our objective is to determine the frequency of H. pylori infection and their ethnic distribution in young healthy volunteers in Malaysia. Methods: Consecutive young healthy students of the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur were recruited for the study. The diagnosis of H. pylori infection was determined by a validated 13C Urea Breath Test. Results: As part

of an on-going study on young healthy Malaysian adults, 447 subjects were recruited. Mean age was 22.31 ± 2.26. 13C urea breath tests were positive in 40 out of 447 volunteers giving rise selleck inhibitor a prevalence rate of 8.9%. Eight (3.8%) of 209 Malay, Fourteen (8.5%) of 164 Chinese and eighteen (24.3%) of 74 Indian had H.pylori infection. The difference between three ethnic groups were statistically significant. (p values < 0.001). Twenty eight (9.7%) of 290 female and MCE twelve (7.6%) of 157 male were 13C urea breath test positive (p values = 0.477). Conclusion: Low prevalence of H. pylori infection observed in all volunteers. The high H. pylori prevalence amongst Indians

and Chinese compared to Malays have been well shown in previous studies. However, over time, the prevalence rates in Chinese appeared to have declined dramatically nevertheless prevalence rates in Indians remains highest among the three ethnic groups. We await analysis on a larger sample population to confirm our preliminary findings described here. Key Word(s): 1. H.pylori Prevalence; 2. Multiethnicity; 3. Urea Breath Test; 4. Young Adults; Presenting Author: HWONG RUEY LEOW Additional Authors: XINSHENG TEH, MUN FAI LOKE, JAMUNARANI VADIVELU, KHEAN LEE GOH Corresponding Author: HWONG RUEY LEOW Affiliations: University of Malaya Objective: Antibiotic resistance decreases success of Helicobacter pylori. (H. pylori) eradication and therefore the primary or background resistance to various commonly used antibiotics is crucially important in our choice of treatment regimens. In a previous study in our local Malaysian population, resistance to clarithromycin and levofloxacin was shown to be zero. Our objective is to monitor the prevalence of H.