Peptic Ulcer

Peptic Ulcer General Information

Generally, an ulcer is caused by too much stress and too much spicy meals. In most cases, this disease is characterized by open sores that appear in the inside lining of the patient’s stomach, upper small intestine and esophagus. The most common symptom of Peptic Ulcer is pain felt in these areas. The disease can also appear due to the patient’s lifestyle. There are also cases in which it can be caused by a bacterial infection or certain medicines, that can affect the stomach and the upper part of the intestine called duodenum. Usually, when the patient presents an esophageal form of the disease, the cause is reflux of stomach acid. Peptic Ulcer usually lasts for five days to several weeks. Depending on which part of the body is affected, the disease can have different names which can include gastric ulcer, when it affects the stomach, duodenal ulcer, when it affects the small intestine, and esophageal ulcer, when it affects the lower part of the patient esophagus, and can also be associated with another gastric disease, called gastroesophageal reflux disease.

This kind of medical condition can be caused by certain factors such as medication, smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, and stress. The most common medication that can cause Peptic Ulcer include nonsteroidal anti inflammatory drugs that can irritate or inflame the lining of the patient’s stomach and small intestine, and can be prescribed as Advil, Motrin, Aleve and Orudis KT. Nicotine in tobacco can also increase the volume of the acid concentration inside the stomach.

Peptic Ulcer Symptoms

In most cases, a typical symptom of Peptic Ulcer is burning pain felt in the affected parts of the patient’s body. The pain is caused by the ulcer and is worsened by the acid inside the stomach that comes in contact with the ulcerated area. This pain can be felt anywhere from the navel to the breastbone, can last for few minutes to several hours, can be worse when the patient’s stomach is empty, can flare at night, can often be temporarily relieved by eating certain meals that can act by buffering the acid inside the stomach, or by applying medicines that reduce this acid concentration, and can come and go as it pleases.

The disease can also cause less typical signs and symptoms that include vomiting blood, dark blood in stools or stools that are black or tarry, nausea, vomiting, unexplained weight loss and chest pain. If Peptic Ulcer is not treated properly or not treated at all, it can cause internal bleeding and can attack the wall of the patient’s stomach or small intestine, increasing the risk of developing severe infections of the abdominal cavity, and the most common condition is peritonitis. The disease can also cause scar tissues that can obstruct the passage of food through the gastrointestinal tract, leading to a sensation of becoming full easy, the urgent need to vomit and the loss of weight. Peptic Ulcer is not a disease that can be treated at home; anti acids and acid blockers can relieve the symptoms.

Peptic Ulcer Treatment

Due to the fact that Peptic Ulcer is usually caused by H. pylori bacteria, the treatment has two major goals and can include killing the bacteria and reducing the level of acid in the patient’s digestive tract to relieve pain and speed healing. In achieving these goals, doctors usually prescribe certain medications that can include: antibiotic medications, acid blockers, anti-acids, proton pump inhibitors and cyprotective agents. In most cases, the antibiotic treatment is applied in combination with other medications and supplements, because antibiotics alone are not strong enough to kill the organism that causes the disease. The most common antibiotics that can be prescribed to kill the H. pylori bacteria can include Amoxycillin or Amoxil, Calrithromycin or Biaxin and Metronidazole or Flagyl. Some doctors choose to apply a prefabricated combination of medicines that can include Prevpac or Helidac. The antibiotic treatment trial is usually applied for at least two weeks, for maximum effects and to increase the heal rate. Acid blockers, also known as histamine blockers act by reducing the amount of hydrochloric acid which is generally released into the patient’s digestive system. These medicines relieve the pain and speed the healing. The acid blocker medicines also act by keeping histamine from reaching their receptors. Histamine is generally a substance that is present in the patient’s bloodstream. When the substance reacts with the receptors, they cause an acid secreting response to the cells inside the stomach that release hydrochloric acid.

The most common acid blockers that are prescribed to treat Peptic Ulcer can include Ranitidine or Zantac, Famotidine or Pepcid, Cimetidine or Tagemet and Nizatidine or Axid. There are cases in which the doctor can prescribe a diet rich in anti-acids. These anti-acids can be taken in addition to acid blockers or alone. These medicines act by neutralizing the existing acid inside the stomach, instead of reducing the acid secretion, providing fast pain relief. Another way to treat Peptic Ulcer and to reduce stomach acid is to shut down the pumps inside the acid secreting stomach cells. Proton pump inhibitors usually act by reducing the acid by blocking the action of these pumps. In most cases, the most common proton pump inhibitors can be prescribed as omeprazole or Prilosec, lansoprazole or Prevacid, rabeprazole or Aciphex and esomeprazole or Nexium. There is another medicine called pantoprozole or Protoxin which can be administered orally or intravenously. There are cases in which long term use of these medicine, especially in high doses, increase the risk of developing hip fracture.

In treating Peptic Ulcer, doctors can also administrate cytoprotective agents that act by protecting the tissues that line the patient’s stomach and small intestine. The most common cytoprotective agents include Sucralfate or Carafate and Misoprostol or Cytotec. There are cases in which the doctor can also prescribe bismuth subsalicylate or Pepto-Bismol which is an agent that can provide long term pain relief. It is very important to apply these medicines in small doses, because if they are not administered properly they can worsen the Peptic Ulcer leading to life threatening complications.