Your Stomach and Duodenal Ulcer

People used to believe that they could get ulcers from living lives that were too stressful or by something that they were eating. The truth is that ulcers are caused by too much acid specifically hydrochloric acid and pepsin.

When you have an ulcer (open sore) in the stomach, it is called a gastric ulcer. When your ulcer is in the duodenum, it is called a duodenal ulcer.

People used to believe that they could get ulcers from living lives that were too stressful or by something that they were eating. The truth is that ulcers are caused by too much acid specifically hydrochloric acid and pepsin. Research shows that 80% of gastric ulcers and 90% of duodenal ulcers are caused by infection with a bacterium called Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). Lifestyle, acid and pepsin, and H. pylori can all play a role in ulcer development. H. pylori are what is the primary cause of the ulcers.

Factors that play a role in the development of ulcers of the stomach and duodenal include Helicobacter pylori, smoking, caffeine ingestion, drinking alcohol, emotional stress (increases the pain of ulcers but not causes them), and acid and pepsin, and also nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs).

If you have these types of ulcers you may have the following symptoms: belching, feeling tired and weak, nausea, loss of weight, and also poor appetite.

You can have ulcers and not have any symptoms. Usually a person who has ulcers feels a gnawing or burning sensation in the abdomen between the navel and the breastbone. They feel these sensations usually happen between meals or in the early hours of the morning. They may feel these sensations for a few minutes or the sensations may last for a few hours.

Individuals with these types of ulcers can experience complications that include: bleeding of the ulcer, perforation of the ulcer, a narrowing or obstruction at the end of the stomach, where the duodenum is attached, caused by swelling and scarring from the ulcer.

Diagnosis

There are several tests used to make the diagnosis including an upper GI, endoscopy, and blood, breath and stomach tissue tests.

Ulcers can be diagnosed by having an upper GI (gastrointestinal) series, which are x-rays of the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum. These x-rays are used to help pinpoint where the ulcer is located. The individual is asked to swallow a chalky liquid called, "barium" in order for the ulcer to show up on the x-rays.

Another diagnostic test is called an endoscopy. This is where a small flexible instrument with a camera at the end is inserted through the mouth of the individual and into the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum in order for the doctor to view the entire upper GI tract.

Treatment

Your doctor will determine the correct treatment for you depending on the location of the ulcer, the size and your age. Other factors that will determine your treatment are your overall health, and your medical history, your tolerance for medications, procedures and therapies, what the doctor determines to be the expected course of the disease, and of course your opinions or preferences for treatment.

It may be suggested that you make some lifestyle changes including avoiding or limiting any foods that the individual finds to be irritating to their symptoms, and smoking has been shown to delay the healing of ulcers; so decreasing the habit or quitting will be advised.

Treatment may be a combination of medications, antibiotics and surgery.