Histological and histochemical alterations in liver of chronic hepatitis C patients with Helicobacter pylori infection

Hepatitis C is an infectious disease affecting the liver. Chronic infection can progress fibrosis and cirrhosis, liver failure or liver cancer. Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is a spiral bacterium infects the stomach of more than 50% of the human population worldwide. H. pylori DNA has been identified in human livers and has been implicated in chronic liver disease and liver cancer. The present work was aimed to study the histological and histochemical alterations in liver of HCV patients with or without H. pylori infection. Immunohistochemical detection of H. pylori showed positive reactivity in 62 biopsies out of 100 biopsies (38% HCV patients and 62% HCV patients coinfected with H. pylori). Histological examination of liver of HCV patients showed microvesicular and macrovesicular steatosis, lymphocytic infiltrations, fibrosis and cirrhosis. Cirrhotic nodules and impairment of hepatic parenchyma were common in HCV patients coinfected with H. pylori. HCV patients coinfected with H. pylori recorded higher NIC score and pronounced fibrosis stages than HCV patients. Glycogen and total proteins decreased in hepatocytes and cirrhotic nodules in HCV patients. Such decrease was marked in liver of HCV patients coinfected with H. pylori. So it is recommended to perform a complete analysis for H. pylori in HCV patients suggesting that it will help in therapy of this disease.