To assess the application value of the ¹³C-urea breath test in primary hospitals.

Eight hundred and twenty patients with Helicobacter pylori (Hp) infection underwent the ¹³C-urea breath test at the outpatient department of the Beijing North Hospital, Ordnance Industry from January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017. Hp infection was analyzed in patients of different sex and different age groups, and the patients who tested positive in the ¹³C- urea breath test were referred to higher-level hospitals for gastroscopy follow-up.

The total positive rate of the ¹³C-urea breath test in 820 patients was 28.3%. The positive rates of different age groups were significantly different: the positive rate in the 71 years~ group was the lowest (15.8%) compared with other groups, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). Regarding the sex group, the positive rate of male patients was 28.6%, and that of female patients was 28.1%. There was no significant difference between the two groups (P>0.05). Two hundred and three patients who were positive for the ¹³C-urea breath test were referred to higher hospitals for electronic gastroscopy. The results of pathological diagnosis and further Hp examination showed that all the 203 cases had gastrointestinal diseases and were all Hp positive. The results of ¹³C-urea breath test and electronic gastroscopy were identical.

The ¹³C-urea breath test as a non-invasive method, can be used in primary hospitals for the screening of Hp infection in outpatients with gastric diseases. The results are stable and reliable, which is conducive to the early detection of Hp infection and timely treatment in patients with stomach diseases in primary hospitals.