The presence of Campylobacter pylori in nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug associated gastritis

Although Campylobacter pylori has recently been causally linked to active chronic gastritis and peptic ulcer disease, its relationship to nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drug (NSAID) associated gastritis is unclear. We performed a case-control study of 100 patients who had undergone gastric biopsy. Blinded review of Giemsa stained slides demonstrated the presence of C. pylori in 32% of 19 NSAID treated cases with active chronic gastritis vs 3% of 36 controls with chronic gastritis not taking NSAID, and 69% of 45 'positive' controls with active chronic gastritis not taking NSAID (p < 0.001). Our results suggest a possible multifactorial etiology of NSAID associated gastritis.