Stomach ulcer: symptoms, causes and treatment

Although they are medically known by the name of peptic ulcers or gastric ulcers, the one popularly known as stomach ulcer It consists of a wound or sore that is found mostly in the lining of the stomach, in the esophagus or even in the upper small intestine.

From a medical point of view, and being - above all - much more specific, it consists of a circumscribed erosion that affects the mucosa that covers the stomach or the duodenum, and can be classified as a gastric ulcer or duodenal ulcer. It has little or no tendency to healing.

They can appear in both men and women, regardless of their age; that is, it can appear both in childhood and in much more advanced ages.

Symptoms of stomach ulcer

Feeling of corrosive pain

One of its most characteristic symptoms is the sensation of having a corrosive pain, which tends to appear at night during sleep hours, or also between 1 and 2 hours after meals. It presents as a painful acid dyspepsia.

Gastroesophageal reflux

It is another of the most common symptoms, appearing together with heartburn or heartburn, which disappears when you consume antacids or an alkaline agent, as for example is the case of bicarbonate.

Nausea and vomiting

It is usually another of the common symptoms, linked in turn to weight loss. Sometimes vomiting can occur with both blood and stomach acid.

Stool color

People with stomach ulcers may have clay-colored stools or black, bloody stools. You can know more in our article about stool color.

Causes of stomach ulcer

Although there are a great diversity of theories in relation to the very different causes of gastric ulcer, there seems to be some agreement that they have a greater relationship with:

Food: the consumption of caffeine tends to stimulate the secretion of acid in the stomach, contributing to its formation.
Habits of life: while tobacco delays its healing and contributes to its reappearance, emotional stress has an important relationship.
Gastric hyperacidity.
Excessive use of medications.
Infection with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori.

What is your treatment?

There are different medical treatments that can help the healing of the ulcer, which will ultimately depend on what has caused it.

In the case, for example, that its appearance was due to infection by Helicobacter pylori, the treatment presents above all the objective of reducing and eliminating it, with a combination of antibiotics and an inhibitor of acid secretion.

In case of any other cause, you can opt for a protector of the lining of the stomach, antagonists of the H2 receptors and inhibitors of the proton pump.

Image | giaurom This article is published for informational purposes only. It can not and should not replace the consultation with a Physician. We advise you to consult your Trusted Doctor. ThemesGastrointestinal disorders