Wiping Out Stomach Bug Improves Cholesterol Level

Taking drugs to destroy a common stomach microbe called Helicobacter pylori can increase blood levels of HDL “good” cholesterol, new research shows. In theory, this could reduce a person’s chances of having a heart attack or stroke.

Previous studies have suggested a link between H. pylori infection and heart disease, Dr. Hubert Scharnagl, of the University of Graz in Austria, and colleagues note in the American Journal of Cardiology. “We recently reported that chronic H. pylori infection coincides with low HDL cholesterol.” The researchers assessed changes in the cholesterol levels of 87 patients who were placed on anti-H. pylori drugs as a treatment for intestinal ulcers. Eradication of H. pylori was associated with a significant increase in HDL cholesterol, according to the investigators. Total cholesterol levels also rose, but this increase was overshadowed by the rise in HDL cholesterol. Scharnagl and colleagues point out that the increase in HDL Is “at least as strong” as that commonly seen in patients treated with statins, which includes drugs like Zocor and Lipitor. (Source: American Journal of Cardiology: Reuters Health News: February 2004.)