What are the complications of ulcers in the stomach?
Complications of Peptic Ulcers 1 Bleeding. As an ulcer erodes the muscles of the stomach or duodenal wall, blood vessels may also be damaged, which causes the bleeding. 2 Perforation. Sometimes an ulcer eats a hole in the wall of the stomach or duodenum. ... 3 Narrowing and Obstruction. ... 4 Causes. ...
What are the possible complications of peptic ulcer disease (PUD)?
Complications of peptic ulcer disease (PUD) include bleeding, penetration, perforation, and gastric outlet obstruction. This topic will provide an overview of the complications of PUD and their general management.
What are the symptoms of a peptic ulcer?
The most common peptic ulcer symptom is burning stomach pain. Stomach acid makes the pain worse, as does having an empty stomach. The pain can often be relieved by eating certain foods that buffer stomach acid or by taking an acid-reducing medication, but then it may come back.
What happens if an ulcer is not treated?
If ulcers aren't treated or treatment isn't effective, serious complications may occur. The most common complications include bleeding, perforation of the stomach or duodenal walls, and obstruction of the digestive tract. As an ulcer erodes the muscles of the stomach or duodenal wall, blood vessels may also be damaged, which causes the bleeding.
What are the complication of peptic ulcer disease?
There are four major complications of peptic ulcer disease (PUD): bleeding, perforation, penetration, and obstruction. Complications can occur in patients with peptic ulcer of any etiology.
What is the most life threatening complication of a peptic ulcer?
If the ulcer erodes beyond that, a hole can open that goes all the way through the intestine, causing perforation. A perforation is always considered a medical emergency. Most ulcers can be treated with medications, including antibiotics.
What are the five complications of peptic ulcers?
There are four major complications of peptic ulcer disease (PUD): bleeding, perforation, penetration, and obstruction. Complications can occur in patients with peptic ulcer of any etiology.
Which complication of peptic ulcer disease is more common in older adults?
Hemorrhage is the most common complication of PUD. It affects from 50 to 170 per 100,000 people each year in the United States, with the elderly at highest risk. Approximately 50% of all upper GI bleeds are due to PUD.
What system do peptic ulcers affect?
Peptic ulcers can affect anywhere in the digestive system. Symptoms include stomach pain, sometimes feeling like indigestion, and nausea. Causes include bacteria and certain types of medication.
What organs do peptic ulcers affect?
A peptic ulcer is a sore on the lining of your stomach or the first part of your small intestine (duodenum). If the ulcer is in your stomach, it is called a gastric ulcer. If the ulcer is in your duodenum, it is called a duodenal ulcer. Ulcers are fairly common.
What are the complications of perforated peptic ulcer?
Complications to peptic ulcer disease include perforation, bleeding and obstruction. Although perforations are second to bleeding in frequency (about 1:6 ratio), they represent the most frequent indication for emergency surgery for PUD.
Does peptic ulcer cause back pain?
A peptic ulcer can cause referred pain in your back. This type of ulcer is a sore in your stomach or the small intestines. Typical symptoms include: heartburn.
What is the treatment of peptic ulcer disease?
Proton pump inhibitors — also called PPIs — reduce stomach acid by blocking the action of the parts of cells that produce acid. These drugs include the prescription and over-the-counter medications omeprazole (Prilosec), lansoprazole (Prevacid), rabeprazole (Aciphex), esomeprazole (Nexium) and pantoprazole (Protonix).
What is the most common treatment for peptic ulcer?
Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) Omeprazole, pantoprazole and lansoprazole are the PPIs most commonly used to treat stomach ulcers.
Which of the following are signs and symptoms that could indicate a peptic ulcer?
Signs You May Have a Peptic UlcerBurning pain- The most common peptic ulcer symptom is a burning sensation or gnawing pain in the middle of your abdomen. ... Nausea- The symptoms of peptic ulcers may include nausea. ... Vomiting- The symptoms of peptic ulcers may include vomiting.More items...•
What are the complications of gastritis?
What are possible complications of acute gastritis?Bleeding from an erosion or ulcer.Gastric outlet obstruction due to edema limiting an adequate transfer of food from the stomach to the small intestine.Dehydration from vomiting.Renal insufficiency as a result of dehydration.
What is a peptic ulcer?
An ulcer is a sore or lesion that develops in the lining of the digestive tract. Ulcers in the Peptic ulcers are those that develop in the stomach or duodenum. If ulcers aren't treated or treatment isn't effective, serious complications may occur. The most common complications include bleeding, perforation of the stomach or duodenal walls, ...
How do ulcers form?
Ulcers form when the protective lining of the stomach or duodenum (known as the mucosa and submucosa) becomes eroded. Small ulcers may not cause any symptoms, but large ulcers can cause serious bleeding. Most ulcers occur in the first layer of the inner lining. If the ulcer erodes beyond that, a hole can open that goes all the way through the intestine, called a perforation of the intestinal lining. A perforation is a medical emergency.
How to treat bleeding ulcers?
2 Most bleeding ulcers can be treated endoscopically by locating the ulcer and cauterizing the blood vessel with a heating device or injecting it with material to stop bleeding. If endoscopic treatment is unsuccessful, surgery may be required.
What causes a person to vomit?
As a result, a person may vomit the contents of the stomach. Endoscopic balloon dilation may be performed. The endoscopic balloon procedure uses a balloon to force open a narrowed passage. If the dilation does not relieve the problem, then surgery may be necessary. 4
Can a perforated ulcer cause peritoneal pain?
Bacteria and partially digested food can spill through the opening into the sterile abdominal cavity (peritoneum). A perforated ulcer can cause peritonitis, an inflammation of the abdominal cavity and wall. The symptoms of a perforated ulcer include sudden, sharp, severe pain.
What is a peptic ulcer?
Overview. A peptic ulcer is a sore on the lining of your stomach, small intestine or esophagus. A peptic ulcer in the stomach is called a gastric ulcer. A duodenal ulcer is a peptic ulcer that develops in the first part of the small intestine (duodenum). An esophageal ulcer occurs in the lower part of your esophagus.
What causes peptic ulcers?
The most common causes of peptic ulcers are infection with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) and long-term use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, others) and naproxen sodium (Aleve). Stress and spicy foods do not cause peptic ulcers. However, they can make your symptoms worse.
How to reduce the risk of peptic ulcers?
Use caution with pain relievers. If you regularly use pain relievers that increase your risk of peptic ulcer, take steps to reduce your risk of stomach problems. For instance, take your medication with meals. Work with your doctor to find the lowest dose possible that still gives you pain relief.
How to tell if you have a peptic ulcer?
Feeling of fullness, bloating or belching. Intolerance to fatty foods. Heartburn. Nausea. The most common peptic ulcer symptom is burning stomach pain. Stomach acid makes the pain worse, as does having an empty stomach. The pain can often be relieved by eating certain foods that buffer stomach acid ...
Where does a peptic ulcer occur?
An esophageal ulcer occurs in the lower part of your esophagus. Peptic ulcers are open sores that develop on the inside lining of your stomach and the upper portion of your small intestine. The most common symptom of a peptic ulcer is stomach pain. Peptic ulcers include: Gastric ulcers that occur on the inside of the stomach.
Where does Helicobacter pylori live?
Helicobacter pylori bacteria commonly live in the mucous layer that covers and protects tissues that line the stomach and small intestine. Often, the H. pylori bacterium causes no problems, but it can cause inflammation of the stomach's inner layer, producing an ulcer. It's not clear how H. pylori infection spreads.
Can peptic ulcers cause black stools?
Many people with peptic ulcers don't even have symptoms. Less often, ulcers may cause severe signs or symptoms such as: Vomiting or vomiting blood — which may appear red or black. Dark blood in stools, or stools that are black or tarry.
What is a peptic ulcer?
Peptic ulcer disease is a condition in which painful sores or ulcers develop in the lining of the stomach or the first part of the small intestine (the duodenum). Normally, a thick layer of mucus protects the stomach lining from the effect of its digestive juices. But many things can reduce this protective layer, ...
What is the rarest condition that can occur if you have a peptic ulcer?
Having surgery. Taking other medications, such as steroids. Peptic ulcer disease can also occur if you have a rare condition called Zollinger-Ellison syndrome (gastrinoma). This condition forms a tumor of acid-producing cells in the digestive tract.
Why do ulcers form in the stomach?
Many cases of peptic ulcer disease develop because a bacterial infection eats away the protective lining of the digestive system . People who frequently take pain relievers are more likely to develop ulcers.
Why does H. pylori cause stomach acid?
This breakdown is a problem because your stomach contains strong acid intended to digest food.
What happens if you have an ulcer in your stomach?
Without the right treatment, ulcers can lead to serious health problems, including: Bleeding. Perforation (a hole through the wall of the stomach). Gastric outlet obstruction (from swelling or scarring) that blocks the passageway from the stomach to the small intestine.
What is the best way to detect ulcers?
Less frequently, imaging tests such as X-rays and CT scans are used to detect ulcers. You have to drink a specific liquid that coats the digestive tract and makes ulcers more visible to the imaging machines.
What is the procedure to check for ulcers?
Endoscopy. If you have severe symptoms, your provider may recommend an upper endoscopy to determine if you have an ulcer. In this procedure, the doctor inserts an endoscope (a small, lighted tube with a tiny camera) through your throat and into your stomach to look for abnormalities. H. Pylori tests.
Definition
Prognosis
- If ulcers aren't treated or treatment isn't effective, serious complications may occur. The most common complications include bleeding, perforation of the stomach or duodenal walls, and obstruction of the digestive tract.
Clinical significance
- As an ulcer erodes the muscles of the stomach or duodenal wall, blood vessels may also be damaged, which causes the bleeding. If the affected blood vessels are small, the blood may slowly seep into the digestive tract. Over a long period of time, a person may become anemic. If a damaged blood vessel is large, bleeding is dangerous and requires prompt medical attention. Th…
Signs and symptoms
- Sometimes an ulcer eats a hole in the wall of the stomach or duodenum. Bacteria and partially digested food can spill through the opening into the sterile abdominal cavity (peritoneum). A perforated ulcer can cause peritonitis, an inflammation of the abdominal cavity and wall. The symptoms of a perforated ulcer include sudden, sharp, severe pain. Immediate hospitalization a…
Pathophysiology
- Ulcers form when the protective lining of the stomach or duodenum (known as the mucosa and submucosa) becomes eroded. Small ulcers may not cause any symptoms, but large ulcers can cause serious bleeding. Most ulcers occur in the first layer of the inner lining. If the ulcer erodes beyond that, a hole can open that goes all the way through the intestine, called a perforation of t…
Treatment
- Despite the popular belief that peptic ulcers are caused by spicy foods or stress, the reality is that most of the time, peptic ulcers are caused by infection with a bacterium called Helicobacter pylori (H pylori). Most ulcers can be treated with medications, including antibiotics. But surgery may be needed in some cases.
Overview
Symptoms
- Burning stomach pain
- Feeling of fullness, bloating or belching
- Intolerance to fatty foods
- Heartburn
Causes
- Peptic ulcers occur when acid in the digestive tract eats away at the inner surface of the stomach or small intestine. The acid can create a painful open sore that may bleed. Your digestive tract is coated with a mucous layer that normally protects against acid. But if the amount of acid is increased or the amount of mucus is decreased, you could develop an ulcer. Common causes in…
Risk Factors
- In addition to having risks related to taking NSAIDs, you may have an increased risk of peptic ulcers if you: 1. Smoke.Smoking may increase the risk of peptic ulcers in people who are infected with H. pylori. 2. Drink alcohol.Alcohol can irritate and erode the mucous lining of your stomach, and it increases the amount of stomach acid that's produced. 3. Have untreated stress. 4. Eat sp…
Complications
- Left untreated, peptic ulcers can result in: 1. Internal bleeding.Bleeding can occur as slow blood loss that leads to anemia or as severe blood loss that may require hospitalization or a blood transfusion. Severe blood loss may cause black or bloody vomit or black or bloody stools. 2. A hole (perforation) in your stomach wall.Peptic ulcers can eat ...
Prevention
- You may reduce your risk of peptic ulcer if you follow the same strategies recommended as home remedies to treat ulcers. It also may be helpful to: 1. Protect yourself from infections. It's not clear just how H. pylori spreads, but there's some evidence that it could be transmitted from person to person or through food and water. You can take steps to protect yourself from infections, such a…