Ulcer Symptoms and Treatment

Posted by admin on 5/02/10 • Categorized as General

What is Ulcer?

Peptic ulcers are sores on the linings of the stomach interior walls (gastric ulcers) or in the duodenum (duodenal ulcer).

The ulcer sores on the stomach’s interior linings have crater like appearance generally 1/4 inch to 3/4 inch in diameter. Ulcers can only get worst when left untreated and the gastric juices made up of pepsin and HCL needed to digest food can further erode the stomach lining to cause deeper ulceration and bleeding.

Causes and Risk Factors of Ulcer

The mucosal coating lining the inner stomach walls protects it from its own secretion of hydrochloric acids needed to break down the foods we eat. The sores in these linings are caused by the Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) bacteria or regular use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agents or NSAIDS like ibuprofen and aspirin.

The H.pylori once attached to the mucus membrane of the stomach lining produces an ammonia-generating enzyme called unease which weakens the stomach lining, thinning it to make the stomach’s inner walls more susceptible to the weathering effect of its own acids.

NSAIDs like aspirin and ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, Nuprin), as well as naproxen (Naprosyn, Anaprox) and piroxicam (Feldene) interfere with the stomach’s interior production of its mucosal linings and the bicarbonate compounds that neutralize the hydrochloric acids leaving the stomach walls vulnerable to ulceration.

A person’s lifestyle increases the risks of developing ulcers like unbridled smoking, coffee and alcohol consumption in excess. Mental end emotional stress has been shown to aggravate existing ulcers but is less conclusive as a risk factor. People who continually allow hunger pangs to fester and pass are the best candidates for stomach ulceration.

Symptoms of Ulcer

The early symptoms of ulcer include a burning pain in the abdomen between the navel and the breastbone. The pain can worsen after meal or in the middle of sleep when the stomach is empty. The pain can be accompanied with nausea and vomiting. There’s usually gradual but significant weight loss due to irregular food intake and loss of appetite.

Severe ulcer exhibits early fatigue and general body weakness as well as blood in vomit or stool which are clear signs of a bleeding ulcer. If peptic ulcer remains untreated, the ulcer can start to eat into the tiny blood vessels of the stomach walls and you have the start of bleeding ulcers.

Leave it untreated and you get perforated ulcer which means that the sores have already created a hole in the stomach or duodenum so that digested food can spill through, causing inflammation and infection.

Diagnosis of Ulcer

Diagnosing peptic ulcer at any stage of severity opens up a number of diagnostic options for the doctor such as performing endoscopy, x-ray examinations, as well as testing for H. pylori via blood tests. Endoscopy can only go so far as the upper digestive tract. A suspicion of ulcer will lead to a series of X-rays where the patient must swallow barium-containing liquid to make the ulcer visible in X-ray. A gastroscopy will confirm the ulcer with tissue samples to check if the ulcer is cancerous.

Treatment of Ulcer

Modifying your lifestyle and reducing stress can go hand in glove with prescriptive medication to treat gastric and duodenal ulcers. H2 blockers, proton-pump inhibitors and mucosal protective agents can medicate ulcers in its early to moderate stages but severe or bleeding ulcers will require surgery.

Symptoms and Treatments