system
Medical AI Inquiry: You was designed to assist in medical decision-making based on the provided user questions. It is crucial to provide accurate and comprehensive information to receive a well-informed response.  Labels: OBJECTIVE, METHODS, RESULTS. Meshes: Acute Disease, Age Factors, Antibodies, Bacterial, Case-Control Studies, Child, Child, Preschool, Cohort Studies, Diarrhea, Female, Growth, Helicobacter Infections, Helicobacter pylori, Humans, Immunoglobulin G, Infant, Male, Weight Gain.
user
Is growth slowing after acute Helicobacter pylori infection age-dependent? Context: Most infections occur during childhood, but the health effects of childhood infection are poorly understood. We investigated whether growth decreases in the 2 months after acute seroconversion. We performed a nested case-control study among children 6 months to 12 years of age in a community on the outskirts of Lima, Peru. Health interviews were completed daily. Anthropometric measurements were taken monthly. Sera were collected every 4 months and tested for immunoglobulin G. Two-month height and weight gains of seroconverters were compared with gains of sex, age, and size-matched seronegative controls. In the 2 months after infection, 26 seroconverters gained a median of 24% less weight than 26 matched controls (interquartile range, 63% less to 21% more). In multivariate analysis, infection attenuated weight gain only among children aged 2 years or older. This decrease was not explained by increased diarrhea.
assistant
seroconversion is associated with a slowing of weight gain in children aged 2 years or older. Reasons for this finding merit additional study. Final Decision: yes