How You Know If You Have A Stomach Ulcer

What Are The Symptoms Of Any Complications

Stomach ulcers can cause various complications but these are much less common now because of more effective treatments. However, complications can be very serious and include:

Bleeding from the ulcer

• This can range from a ‘trickle’ to a life-threatening bleed.
• If there is sudden heavy bleeding then this will cause you to vomit blood and make you feel very faint.
• Less sudden bleeding may cause you to vomit and the vomit looks coffee-coloured because the stomach acid has partly broken down the blood.
• A more gradual trickle of blood will pass through your gut and cause your stools to look very dark in colour or even black .

PerforationThis is the term used to describe the ulcer having gone all the way through the wall of the stomach. Food and acid in the stomach then leak out of the stomach. This usually causes severe pain and makes you very unwell. Stomach perforation is a medical emergency and needs hospital treatment as soon as possible.

Stomach blockageThis is now rare. An ulcer at the end of the stomach can cause the outlet of the stomach to narrow and cause an obstruction. This can cause frequent severe vomiting.

Peptic Ulcer Disease Can Be Caused By These Factors Sometimes In Combination

What Are The Symptoms Of A Peptic Ulcer

Youâll most likely feel a burning pain or discomfort between your belly button and breastbone. You might especially notice it on an empty stomach — such as between meals or at night. The pain may stop for a little while if you eat or take an antacid, but then return. The pain can last for a few minutes or a few hours, and may come and go for many days or weeks.

Other symptoms may include:

Small ulcers may not cause any symptoms. But if you notice any of these signs, talk to your doctor.

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How Do Tumors From Zes Cause Peptic Ulcers

Zollinger-Ellison syndrome is a rare disorder that happens when one or more tumors form in your pancreas and duodenum. The tumors release large amounts of gastrin, a hormone that causes your stomach to produce large amounts of acid. The extra acid causes peptic ulcers to form in your duodenum and in the upper intestine.

How Can I Be Sure Its An Ulcer

The only way to be sure an ulcer is causing your discomfort is with a medical diagnosis. We will evaluate your medical history and conduct a thorough physical examination.

To determine the root cause of your ulcer, we may run blood, stool, or breath tests. These tests are designed to look for signs of helicobacter pylori, the bacteria linked to ulcers.

Depending on your unique symptoms, we may also order an endoscopy. During an endoscopy, we insert a tube with a tiny camera down your throat and into your stomach to take pictures of any potential damage and collect tissue samples for analysis.

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How Are Peptic Ulcers Treated

Treatment will depend on the type of ulcer you have. Your healthcare provider will create a care plan for you based on what is causing your ulcer.

Treatment can include making lifestyle changes, taking medicines, or in some cases having surgery.

Lifestyle changes may include:

• Not eating certain foods. Avoid any foods that make your symptoms worse.
• Quitting smoking. Smoking can keep your ulcer from healing. It is also linked to ulcers coming back after treatment.
• Limiting alcohol and caffeine. They can make your symptoms worse.
• Not using NSAIDs . These include aspirin and ibuprofen.

Medicines to treat ulcers may include:

• Antibiotics. These bacteria-fighting medicines are used to kill the H. pylori bacteria. Often a mix of antibiotics and other medicines is used to cure the ulcer and get rid of the infection.
• H2-blockers . These reduce the amount of acid your stomach makes by blocking the hormone histamine. Histamine helps to make acid.
• Proton pump inhibitors or PPIs. These lower stomach acid levels and protect the lining of your stomach and duodenum.
• Mucosal protective agents. These medicines protect the stomach’s mucus lining from acid damage so that it can heal.
• Antacids. These quickly weaken or neutralize stomach acid to ease your symptoms.

In most cases, medicines can heal ulcers quickly. Once the H. pylori bacteria is removed, most ulcers do not come back.

How Long Does Stomach Ulcer Take To Heal

Stomachulcer as the name suggests is an open sore with inflammation that formson the inside lining of the stomach. If left untreated it may turn to becomeserious, leading to dangerous complications. So its usually necessary to take prompttreatment to deal with! The good news, it is treatable and even often curable. Thebiggest question, how long does it take to heal?

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What To Do If You Have Stomach Cancer Or Ulcer Symptoms

• If you have burning pain in your upper stomach that is relieved by eating or taking antacids, call a health-care professional for an appointment. Don’t assume you have an ulcer. Certain other conditions can cause similar symptoms.
• If you vomit blood or have other signs of gastrointestinal bleeding, go to an emergency department right away. Peptic ulcers can cause massive bleeding, which requires blood transfusion or surgery.
• Severe abdominal pain suggests perforation or tearing of an ulcer. This is an emergency that may require surgery to fix a hole in your stomach.
• Vomiting and abdominal pain also can be a sign of an obstruction, another complication of peptic ulcers. This also may require emergency surgery.

How Stomach Ulcers Are Treated

With treatment, most stomach ulcers will heal within a month or two. The treatment recommended for you will depend on what caused the ulcer.

Most people will be prescribed a medication called a proton pump inhibitor to reduce the amount of acid their stomach produces and allow the ulcer to heal naturally.

If an H. pylori infection is responsible for the ulcers, antibiotics will also be used to kill the bacteria, which should prevent the ulcer coming back.

If the ulcers are caused by the use of NSAIDs, PPIs are usually prescribed and your doctor will discuss whether you should keep using NSAIDs.

Alternative medication to NSAIDs, such as paracetamol, may be recommended.

Stomach ulcers can come back after treatment, although this is less likely to happen if the underlying cause is addressed.

Read more about treating stomach ulcers.

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Worried That You Might Have An Ulcer Please Come See Us

If youre experiencing any of the above signs or symptoms, or if your digestive tract is bothering you in any way or causing you pain, please call 232-1919 to make an appointment with one of our Westchester Health gastroenterologists. Well examine you, evaluate your symptoms, maybe perform some tests, and together with you, decide on the best treatment going forward, given your individual health needs. Whenever, wherever you need us, were here for you.

By Elie M. Abemayor, MD, Sc.M., a gastroenterologist with Westchester Health, member of Westchester Health Physician Partners

When Should I Call My Healthcare Provider

See your healthcare provider right away if you have any of these symptoms:

• Vomiting blood or dark material that looks like coffee grounds
• Extreme weakness or dizziness
• Blood in your stools
• Nausea or vomiting that doesnt get better, or gets worse
• A sudden, severe pain that may spread to your back
• Losing weight without even trying

Untreated peptic ulcers may cause other health problems. Sometimes they bleed. If they become too deep, they can break through your stomach.

Ulcers can also keep food from going through your stomach.

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What Is A Stomach Ulcer

Stomach ulcer or gastric ulcer is a painful open sore that develops on the lining of your stomach due to the damage to the inner stomach lining.

This is a type of peptic ulcer disease. Stomach ulcers often can be easily cured however, it can be fatal if not treated properly. It occurs mostly in men are than women

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Nausea and vomiting are also due to the inflammatory cascade that occurs as a result of the ulcers development, says Modi. The inflammation of the stomach lining itself causes intermittent contractions and if the muscles of the abdominal wall contract with enough force, it can cause full-on vomiting, says Rudolph Bedford, M.D., gastroenterologist at Providence Saint Johns Health Center in Santa Monica, California.

In some cases, these symptoms strike because the ulcer is causing a blockage in the stomach and food isnt able to pass easily into the small intestine. Your doctor can determine the exact cause of the ulcer and, most likely, treat it with antacid medicationsbut, if theres evidence of a blockage, youll be admitted to the hospital for further treatment, says Modi.

Find out what you MUST do the next time you go to the doctor:

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What Are The Signs & Symptoms Of Peptic Ulcers

Stomach pain is the most common sign of an ulcer. It usually feels like sharp aches between the breastbone and the belly button. This pain often comes a few hours after eating. It can also happen during the night or early in the morning, when the stomach is empty. Eating something or taking acid suppressor medicine sometimes eases the pain.

Other symptoms of ulcers can include:

• loss of appetite
• burping or hiccupping a lot
• weight loss
• vomiting
• bloody or blackish bowel movements

Anyone who thinks they might have an ulcer needs to see a doctor. An ulcer thats not treated can grow larger and deeper. This can lead to other problems, such as bleeding in the digestive system or a hole in the wall of the stomach or duodenum, which can make someone very sick.

How Is An Ulcer Diagnosed

Your doctor will ask you about your symptoms. They may do an endoscopy. This procedure involves inserting a thin, flexible tube attached to a camera down your throat and into your stomach. Your doctor will test your blood, breath or stool for H. pylori. They also can test a sample of your stomach lining. Your doctor also will ask you if you regularly take aspirin or anti-inflammatory medicines.

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Burning Pain In Your Abdomen

This may seem like a no-brainer but the most common sign that people experience when they have a stomach ulcer is a persistent burning pain in their abdomen. This sensation occurs when juices in the stomach used for digestion come into contact with the open sore. For the most part, the pain is felt from the breastbone to navel and is often worse at night than during the day. On the other hand, if you are someone who frequently skips meals, you may find that you experience this pain much throughout the daytime.

What Exactly Is A Stomach Ulcer

Elie M. Abemayor, MD, Sc.M.

Stomach, or peptic, ulcers are open sores that develop on the inside lining of your stomach or the upper portion of your small intestine. This occurs when the thick layer of mucus that protects your stomach from digestive juices is diminished, which then enables digestive acids to eat away at the tissues that line your stomach, causing an ulcer.

According to Medscape, peptic ulcers are almost equally as common in men and women.

There are two types of peptic ulcers:

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When To See The Doctor

Peptic ulcers will get worse if theyre not treated, so contact your doctor if you have symptoms or any signs that you could have one. Unfortunately, a lot of the time the way people find out they have an ulcer is by developing bleedstheyre taking a lot of aspirin or NSAIDS and they either start vomiting blood or have black tarry stool, says Marcus.

Your doctor may be able to diagnose a peptic ulcer by talking with you about your symptoms. Be sure to disclose the frequency of NSAID use.

However, some tests are usually used to confirm the diagnosis. For instance, to see if you have an H. pylori infection, your doctor will test your blood, breath or stool. They may also look inside your stomach and duodenum by doing an endoscopy or X-ray. An endoscopy is a procedure where a lighted tube is inserted through the throat and into the stomach to check for abnormalities.

What Questions Should I Ask My Doctor

If you have stomach ulcers, you may want to ask your doctor:

• What pain reliever can I use instead of an NSAID?
• How will I know if the H. pylori infection is gone?
• How do we find out if the ulcer has healed?
• What can I do relieve symptoms at home during treatment?

A note from Cleveland Clinic

Contrary to commonly held beliefs, ulcers arent caused by stress or foods you eat. Most of time, bacteria causes them. Doctors can treat the bacteria with antibiotics and other medications.

If youve been popping a lot of antacids lately, youre constantly snacking to get rid of a gnawing pain in your stomach or you have any other signs of an ulcer, the best thing you can do for your health is talk to your provider. Treatment can heal an ulcer in a matter of weeks.

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Signs You May Have A Stomach Ulcer

We have absolutely warned our patients about the dangers of untreated ulcers in the past. However, we consider this to be an extremely important matter and therefore, we will continue to try to educate the people of Los Angeles, as well as those elsewhere on the most common symptoms of stomach ulcers. If you know the signs, you can see your doctor sooner rather than later when things have gotten especially bad. Continue reading below to get familiar with what these symptoms are.

How Do Nsaids Cause A Peptic Ulcer

To understand how NSAIDs cause peptic ulcer disease, it is important to understand how NSAIDs work. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs reduce pain, fever, and inflammation, or swelling.

Everyone has two enzymes that produce chemicals in your bodys cells that promote pain, inflammation, and fever. NSAIDs work by blocking or reducing the amount of these enzymes that your body makes. However, one of the enzymes also produces another type of chemical that protects the stomach lining from stomach acid and helps control bleeding. When NSAIDs block or reduce the amount of this enzyme in your body, they also increase your chance of developing a peptic ulcer.

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How Will My Doctor Treat My Stomach Ulcer

Most stomach ulcers take 1-2 months to heal and your doctor/gastroenterologist will prescribe you the treatment based on the cause of your ulcer.

• Your doctor will assess your family history, dietary history, diseases, and medication history and examine your tummy to address the cause of your stomach ulcer.
• Your doctor will discuss with you the side effects of the painkillers and analgesics, which you may be taking, and whether you should keep using them or stop them.
• Your doctor may advise you to stop smoking, stop alcohol consumption, lose some weight, and avoid some trigger foods, such as spicy and fatty food.
• Your doctor may prescribe an alternative painkiller, analgesic, or anti-inflammatory medications, such as Paracetamol.
• Your doctor will prescribe you proton pump inhibitors and antacids to reduce the amount of acid production and some antibiotics for up to 2 weeks to treat H pylori infection.
• Your doctor will prescribe probiotics, which will help to grow good bacteria in your gut and may be useful in killing H pylori bacteria.
• Your doctor may prescribe you bismuth supplements.
• Your doctor may have another endoscopy to check stomach ulcers several weeks after treatment to make sure that the ulcer is gone because a very small number of stomach ulcers might contain cancer.

If the underlying cause is not addressed properly, the stomach ulcer may recur even after the treatment.

Causes Of Stomach Ulcers

A stomach ulcer can be caused by a variety of factors, including:

• Helicobacter pylori bacteria is thought to be responsible for around 60 per cent of stomach ulcers and at least 90 per cent of duodenal ulcers.
• Certain medications which include aspirin or clopidogrel, taken regularly to help prevent heart attack or stroke, and drugs for arthritis. Anti-inflammatory medications are thought to cause around two fifths of stomach ulcers.
• Cancer stomach cancer can present as an ulcer, particularly in older people.

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When Should You Call Or See A Doctor

If you think you have a stomach ulcer, call your doctor. Together you can discuss your symptoms and treatment options. If you dont already have a physician, you can use the Healthline FindCare tool to find a provider near you.

Its important to get a stomach ulcer taken care of because without treatment, ulcers and H. pylori can cause:

• bleeding from the ulcer site that can become life-threatening
• penetration, which occurs when the ulcer goes through the wall of the digestive tract and into another organ, such as the pancreas
• perforation, which occurs when the ulcer creates a hole in the wall of the digestive tract
• obstruction in the digestive tract, which is due to swelling of inflamed tissues
• stomach cancer, specifically

Symptoms of these complications can include those listed below. If you have any of these symptoms, be sure to call you doctor right away:

• weakness