Our aim was to develop a rapid molecular test based on polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) and making it possible to detect Helicobacter pylori directly from gastric biopsy samples, and to test its susceptibility to clarithromycin. A 629-bp fragment of the 23S rRNA gene of H. pylori was amplified by PCR and the mutations responsible for clarithromycin resistance were detected with Bsa1 and Bbs1 restriction endonucleases. Thirty-five gastric samples were tested in parallel by standard microbiologic methods (culture and clarithromycin susceptibility testing with E-test strips) and by PCR-RFLP. The 10 culture-negative samples were also PCR-negative. Sixteen out of the 25 culture-positive samples (64%) were PCR-positive. RFLP analysis could be done in 12 cases and the results were in agreement with those of the E-test: susceptibility in five cases, resistance in seven (six A2144G mutations and one A2143G mutation).