Impact of migration on Helicobacter pylori seroprevalence in the offspring of Turkish immigrants in Germany.

We conducted a seroepidemiological study to determine the impact of ethnicity, environmental setting, and sociodemographic factors on H. pylori seropositivity. Three subgroups were recruited encompassing 675 Germans (402 males, 273 females), 260 Turkish people born and raised in Germany (145 males, 115 females) and 148 Turkish people living in Turkey (91 males, 57 females), Ages ranged from newborn to a maximum of 30 years in all subgroups. H. pylori immunoglobulin G serum antibodies were determined by a commercial ELISA.