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The Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research (PNGIMR), has donated a gastroendoscope to the Goroka General Hospital in April.

The gastroendoscope was used in PNGIMRs Helicobacter Study titled ‘Analysis of the phylogenetic structure and geographic distribution of the gastric pathogenic bacteria Helicobacter pylori in people from Papua New Guinea.’

The study was in collaboration with the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin, Germany and funded by the ERA – NET pathogenomic network of the German Ministry of Education and Research and the European Union.

The Principle Investigator of the study is Professor Mark Achtman from the Max Planck Institute Department of Molecular Biology with Dr Suparat Phuanukoonnon as the investigator from PNGIMR.

Helicobacter is a bacteria responsible for stomach problems and the Helicobacter study is part of a worldwide study.

In the South Pacific, Papua New Guinea was chosen to be part of the study and the selected site was Goroka, Eastern Highlands Province, because previous studies recorded that gastric problems were most common in these areas.

The aim of the Helicobacter study was to see the genetics of the bacteria and to compare it with other parts of the world that are also in the study.

PNGIMR Helicobacter Study coordinator, Dr Phuanukoonnon said the study was supposed to recruit 75 patients only but when the notice for recruitment was sent out, so many people turned up to be checked but only 103 could be included. She said out of the 103 patients, 4 where fine but the rest had severe gastric problems. PNGIMR collaborated with the Goroka Hospital to carry out the two week study.

Head Physician at Goroka General Hospital, Dr Kilage Vanuga added that 15% of the population walking around today in EHP have stomach problems; either it is ulcers, cancers, bleeding or infections of the stomach lining; but also are not aware that they have a problem.

Goroka General Hospital Director of Medical Services, Doctor Dale Frank said the gastroendoscope was greatly needed by the hospital because without the machine Doctors sometime felt helpless.

But now that the gastroendoscope is available, it will make it easier for the physicians to identify the patient’s problem and diagnoze it correctly.

Both Doctors thanked PNGIMR for the donation and said that the gastroendoscope was greatly needed by the hospital as only a few hospitals in the country have the gastroendoscope and it would now be a great help to the Doctors and the population in the province.

“We’re really happy to have this gastroendoscope machine donated to us and feel satisfied, because nowadays the gastroendoscope may cost approximately K50,000 and it will take a while for us to get that type of money to purchase such a useful machine,” they said.

Dr Vanuga said it has been awhile since the Goroka Hospital last had a gastroendoscope machine.

He said in the past, patients with suspected problems were advised to seek medical treatment in hospitals that had the gastroendoscope machine but now they do not have to send their patients elsewhere.

Dr Vanuga announced that they will start to do the scope every Thursday afternoon.