A century ago the Italian pathologist Bizzozero described the relationships between spiral bacteria and the mammalian gastro intestinal tract. Since 1982, when Helicobacter pylori was discovered, gastroduodenal disease have been completely revised as a con sequence of the results of basic and clinical research in this field. Progress in understanding the pathogenesis of this bacterium has been made by studying H. pylori infection in animal models. More specific diagnostic tools have been developed using new molecular biology techniques. Future trends are directed towards preparing a specific H. pylori vaccine. A new classification for gastritis, the Sydney System, including H. pylori gastritis, was proposed in 1990. As concerns the clinical approach to peptic ulcer disease in the 1990's, the majority of authors agree on the importance of H. pylori eradication. Moreover, recent clinical studies suggest that H. pylori infection can be associated with other gastroduodenal diseases, such as non ulcer dyspepsia and gastric cancer. Multicenter trials to standardize serological methods and evaluate the efficacy of new antimicrobial therapy schedules are planned throughout different European countries. The fourth Workshop of the European Helicobacter Pylori Study Group was held in Bologna, Italy, in November 1991. Two years before Bologna University celebrated its ninth centennial, giving evidence of being the oldest University in the modern world. Thus the H. pylori story that has continued for more than a century has been discussed once again at the University with the oldest tradition in the world.

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) refers to a type of bacteria that causes stomach infection. It is the leading cause of peptic ulcers, as well as gastritis and stomach cancer. This infection is common in children and its signs and symptoms are nausea, weight loss, loss of appetite, bloating, etc. The risk factors of H. pylori infection are associated with living situations and environment, including not having access to a consistent source of clean water and living with someone who has an H. pylori infection. Upper endoscopy, breath test and stool test are used to diagnose this infection. There are certain antibiotics that are utilized for treating H. pylori infection, including metronidazole, clarithromycin and amoxicillin. This book elucidates the concepts and innovative management strategies with respect to Helicobacter pylori infection. It will prove to be immensely beneficial to students and researchers studying this infection. Most of the topics introduced in this book cover clinical aspects of Helicobacter pylori infection.

The impact of Helicobacter pylori on basic science and the clinical management of patients with the complications of this infection is bewildering. The explosion of new information both in the laboratory and at the bedside has progressed at an unprecedented rate. Our main objective in furthering this progress has been to integrate this new information and organize a series of top-quality presentations and discussions between investigators and clinicians on all aspects of H. pylori research and to review the current position and future research directions. To that end, the second meeting 'Helicobacter pylori: Basic Mechanisms to Clinical Cure' was organized in June 1996 in Ottawa, Canada, following the successful format of the first such meeting held in Amelia Island, Florida, in 1993. The meeting again focused on all timely aspects of H. pylori research. Internationally renowned basic and clinical scientists, all experts in their respective fields, explored in depth the spectrum of H. pylori infection and the related complications of gastritis, peptic ulcer, gastric cancer and lymphoma.

Helicobacter pylori has attracted widening interest from basic scientists and clinical investigators and the information on this organism is increasing exponentially. It is now accepted that H. Pylori is the most important cause of chronic active gastritis. Furthermore, data have confirmed a marked reduction in the relapse rate of both duodenal and gastric ulcer after eradication of the organism. These important clinical observations have served as a strong stimulus to the investigation of the basic mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of H. pylori-associated inflammation and the subsequent alterations of gastroduodenal function and gastric mucosal architecture. The book contains chapters by a multidisciplinary, international group of basic scientists and clinical investigators who focus on various microbiological aspects of H. pylori, on the role of H. pylori in peptic ulcer and gastric cancer, and the current status of therapy. The book contains the proceedings of the conference on `Helicobacter pylori: Basic Mechanisms to Clinical Cure', held at Amelia Island, Florida, U.S.A., on November 3--6, 1993.

There are few areas in medical science where the information explosion exceeds the capacity for a busy clinician to keep up to date. One such area is Helicobacter pylori. Since the first paper identifying H. pylori was published in 1983, great progress has occurred concerning H. pylori and its causal relationship to gastritis, duodenal ulcer, gastric ulcer and gastric cancer. In a field which is moving so fast, a lot of new information is continuously reported at medical meetings, often published only in abstract form, without further appearing in peer-reviewed journals. Even gastroenterologists, unless actively involved in the field of H. pylori research themselves, find it difficult to keep abreast of the field. Although several volumes and monographs have appeared on H. pylori, this book is the only one entirely devoted to the clinical pharmacology and therapy of the Helicobacter infection. It is clear that the real-world indications for H. pylori treatment are being broadened, and it is impossible to turn back the tide of prescribing by primary care physicians or gastroenterologists. Some effective and safe eradication regimens are available today but several new ones, often simple variations of an old scheme, are being proposed as equally effective and safe. This volume, which covers the treatment of all the H. pylori-related digestive diseases as well as the management of treatment failure and reinfection, will be a valuable reference text for all those physicians who pursue the cure of this common human infection.

The explosion of new information on Helicobacter pylori-related disease, both in the basic sciences and in clinical medicine, has continued to progress at an unprecedented pace. In many instances H. pylori infection, both in man and in the laboratory animal, has become a model to investigate fundamental biological issues such as micro-organism-host interactions, intracellular signalling, development of mucosal atrophy, mechanism of microbial resistance, disease modifying factors etc. In view of this bewildering flood of new information, the time was considered right to organize yet another update on H. pylori in the successful series 'Basic mechanisms to clinical cure' to define the 'state-of-affairs' in H. pylori research at this time. Our main objective was to integrate this new information in a series of top-quality presentations and discussions between investigators and clinicians, addressing all aspects of H. pylori research, and to review the current position and future research direc tions. The format included state-of-the-art presentations by world experts heavily involved in H. pylori research, followed by in-depth discussion on intriguing or controversial issues. The topics discussed were grouped according to the leading theme: characteristics of the organism, mode of transmission, mechanisms of H. pylori-induced inflammation, causation of disturbances of gastric secretory and motor function, aspects of clinical presentation and management, problems related to H. pylori-associated gastric adenocarcinoma and MALT-lymphoma, novel aspects of antimicrobial therapy, and vaccination. The meeting concluded with a synoptic agenda of suggested future studies for the microbiologist, the histopathologist and the clinician.