Wiping Out Stomach Ulcers

Ezy Health @ GS Tamilan

Its symptoms are: 

• Burning pain in the stomach, between the breastbone and the navel. This pain occurs either when the person is hungry or after a meal. Often, the pain is worse at night because there is no food to buffer the acid in the stomach.
• Bleeding. The ulcer starts as a small crater that penetrates deeper and deeper into the stomach wall. When it hits a blood vessel, bleeding occurs and the person can vomit blood. Further penetration will form a hole in the stomach wall, causing much danger to the victim. As long as there is bleeding, the situation is life threatening and emergency treatment is crucial.
• Indigestion.
• Loss of appetite.
• Nausea/vomiting. 

Treat it once, keep it away forever 

Treat the H pylori infection and you’ll never ever get another stomach ulcer.  

According to associate professor of medicine and consultant gastroenterologist, Dr Yeoh Khay Guan, who has researched the infection, when a person has stomach ulcer, he is also tested for H pylori. The ulcer is then treated together with the H pylori infection, freeing the patient from stomach ulcers, usually for the rest of his life.  

The medication known as “triple therapy”, consisting of a proton pump blocker and two antibiotics, when taken for a week, gets rid of the infection completely and ensures that there is no relapse of stomach ulcers in about 95 per cent of patients.  

The treatment, however, cannot be used as a preventive measure.  

Only one in ten people who have the infection actually get stomach ulcers and the effects of treating the H pylori infection in those without the ulcers are inconclusive.  

So for those who have the infection but no ulcer disease, here’s how you can prevent the ulcers. 

  Preventing stomach ulcers 

The interplay between a host of factors involving the genes, immune system and environment determine whether or not H pylori infection develops into an ulcer. Says Dr Yeoh: “We can only control the lifestyle factors that contribute to ulcer disease.” 

Go easy on the painkillers: Limit the intake of the class of painkillers known as NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) which include aspirin and mefenamic acid (Ponstan). Some of these drugs are taken for headaches, migraine and joint pain, and excessive intake damages the stomach. 

Stop smoking: Smoking inhibits blood flow to the stomach lining, reducing chemicals known as prostaglandins, which repair the stomach. 

Eat wisely: A potentially harmful diet is one that is high in salt and preserved foods. 

Take stress in your stride: Don’t be driven by worry because that would affect the way you eat, how much alcohol you drink and whether or not you smoke another cigarette. Be positive and do what you can. Don’t be overly anxious about things beyond your control. 

  Point to ponder 

Interestingly, while the prevalence of H pylori infection, which is also implicated in stomach cancer and gastritis, is highest among Indians, it is the Chinese who have a higher rate of developing peptic ulcer and gastric cancer.

Research shows that the outcome of whether a person with H pylori infection develops disease depends on the host-bacterial interaction – the result of a contest between the germ’s ability to cause disease and the person’s immune defences, genetic make-up and environmental factors.