This is an automatically translated article.
The article was professionally consulted by Doctor Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital.
Peptic ulcer disease is a common disease in people aged 30 - 50. If not treated early, the disease can lead to dangerous complications such as pyloric stenosis, gastrointestinal bleeding, and even perforation. stomach, stomach cancer,...
1. What is peptic ulcer disease?
Peptic ulcer disease is a disease that causes inflammation, ulcers on the lining of the stomach and duodenum (the first part of the small intestine). The disease is common in people between the ages of 30 and 50, and men have a higher incidence than women.
The main cause of the disease is infection with Helicobacter Pylori (HP), abuse of anti-inflammatory drugs, pain relievers, effects of chemotherapy drugs, radiation therapy, anemia,... In addition, family history , unhealthy eating habits, smoking, drinking alcohol, prolonged stress, ... are also factors that increase the risk of this disease.
Symptoms of peptic ulcer are as follows:
Abdominal pain in the epigastrium (above the navel): A symptom present in most cases of peptic ulcer disease. The nature of the pain can be dull or intense depending on the location of the ulcer. If you have a stomach ulcer, you usually feel pain after eating for a few tens of minutes to a few hours. With duodenal ulcer, pain usually occurs when fasting or about 2 - 3 hours after eating, pain is worse at night; Dull pain lasting intermittently, cyclical and episodic; In addition, the disease also has other symptoms such as nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite, heartburn, burning sensation in the stomach, bloating. During an ulcer, you may lose weight, then your weight will return to normal.
2. Complications of peptic ulcer disease
Many patients with peptic ulcer disease are subjective, without definitive treatment, so the disease is easy to recur. Repeated disease can lead to dangerous complications, including:
Pyloric stenosis: Prolonged peptic ulcer disease can lead to mucosal edema, scarring, and scarring. narrow, making it difficult for food to pass through the pylorus and duodenum. When having pyloric stenosis, the patient will have symptoms of abdominal pain, severe vomiting, and foul-smelling vomit. As the pyloric stenosis progresses, the patient presents with more epigastric pain with dull or severe pain. At the same time, vomiting a lot makes the patient lose water, lose electrolyte balance, easily leading to fatigue and discomfort. If left for a long time, the patient will lose a lot of weight, pale skin, often tired body; Gastrointestinal bleeding: 15-20% of patients with peptic ulcer have ever had gastrointestinal bleeding. In principle, when the ulcer condition lasts for a long time, the deeper the ulcer will be, the more stomach acid will erode the ulcer, causing damage to cells and blood vessels, causing bleeding into the digestive tract, leading to symptoms. vomiting blood, severe abdominal pain in the epigastrium, pain may spread throughout the abdomen, hard abdomen, sweating, ... In case of duodenal ulcer, the blood may flow smoldering or massively, the patient You may pass black stools (bad or fishy smell) or bright red stools. Severe gastrointestinal bleeding that causes massive blood loss can be life-threatening; Gastric perforation: Patients with complications of gastric perforation have symptoms of sudden severe abdominal pain, abdominal cramps, shock, etc. If not treated promptly, gastric perforation can lead to inflammation. peritoneum, leading to death. In particular, this complication can happen very suddenly, making patients and family members unable to react;
Stomach cancer: It is the most dangerous complication of peptic ulcer disease because of its high mortality rate. The rate of gastric cancer occurs in 5-10% of patients, mainly in those who have had ulcers for more than 10 years. In case of early detection of gastric cancer, the patient's 5- to 10-year survival time is quite high. However, because the signs of the disease are often atypical, easily confused with gastritis, most patients are subjective and only detect the disease when it has entered the late stage. Types of ulcerative prepyloric, pylorus, small curvature ulcer, gastric antrum ulcer have the highest risk of gastric cancer complications. The complications of peptic ulcer disease mentioned above are very serious and may require emergency intervention. Therefore, when there are signs of suspicion of the above complications, the patient should go to the nearest hospital for examination, diagnosis and detection of the disease.
3. How to prevent peptic ulcer disease?
Changing eating and living habits, ... are measures to help prevent and support the treatment of peptic ulcer disease better, help improve uncomfortable symptoms of the disease and reduce the risk of other diseases. dangerous complications. Some tips for effective disease prevention include:
Change in diet: Each person needs to eat slowly, chew well, eat on time and avoid skipping meals (especially breakfast), not eating after 8 pm , do not eat too full or too hungry, avoid eating foods that are too sour, spicy, hot, cold, dry, sweet, etc. At the same time, fast foods, canned foods or foods high in fat, salt, and alcohol , beer, tea, coffee, tobacco,... also need to be limited. Besides, it is necessary to add vitamins A, D, B12, K, calcium, iron, zinc, ... from cereals, fresh vegetables and fruits, easily digestible starch, vegetable oil, ... to neutralize better stomach acid; Change living habits: Each person should maintain a reasonable exercise routine, exercise regularly for about 30 minutes/day, 5 times/week for good health and mental comfort. Maintaining the habit of reasonable rest, getting enough sleep, keeping a relaxed mood, avoiding stress, maintaining personal hygiene, etc. is also the secret to effective prevention of gastric and duodenal ulcers; Attention to health examination: It is necessary to limit the use of anti-inflammatory drugs, antibiotics, pain relievers, when using these drugs, consult a doctor to avoid adverse effects on the stomach lining. thick. In addition, the patient should have a follow-up appointment on time, bring the necessary documents and the medicine they are taking for the doctor to compare and give specific advice.
Complications of peptic ulcer disease are very dangerous, but if you have a reasonable diet, lifestyle, follow-up appointments, etc., you can completely prevent problems. this.
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