Peptic Ulcer
- Overview
- Introduction
- Symptoms
- Causes
- Complications
- Homoeopathic Treatment
- Do's and Don'ts
- Diet and Nutrition
WHAT IS PEPTIC ULCER DISEASE?
Ulcer is defined as break in the mucosal surface more than 5 mm in size, with the depth to sub mucosal layer.
Peptic ulcer is break of mucosal integrity of the stomach and/or duodenum leading to local defect due to active inflammation. Peptic ulcers develop as a result of an imbalance between mucosal protection/repair and aggressive factors. Read more about Causes of Peptic Ulcer Disease.
Peptic ulcer disease includes gastric and duodenal ulcers.
Peptic ulcers are often chronic in nature.
WHAT HAPPENS IN PEPTIC ULCER DISEASE
Quick Look
- Abdominal Pain- mainly in Epigastric region
- Abdominal Fullness
- Heartburn
- Waterbrash (Regurgitation of an excessive accumulation of Saliva)
- Loss of appetite
- Nausea and Vomiting
- Hematemesis (Vomiting of blood)
- Melena (Tarry or dark sticky stools which contains partly digested blood due to internal bleeding)
Click to know more about Symptoms of Peptic Ulcer Disease
WHAT CAN PEPTIC ULCER LEAD TO?
If untreated Peptic Ulcer disease can lead to-
- Gastrointestinal Bleeding: Most common complication of Peptic Ulcer
- Perforation: 2nd most common complication of Peptic Ulcer
- Gastric Outlet Obstruction: It happens due to persistent inflammation and edema in peri-pyloric region of stomach.
- Scar tissue formation: Chronic inflammation and edema causes scar tissue formation.
- Penetration: Sometimes ulcer bed invades into adjacent organ
For more details about peptic ulcer complications, click Complication of Peptic Ulcer
HOW WELL HOMEOPATHY WORKS IN PEPTIC ULCER
Homeopathy is the most scientific and comprehensive approach to the treatment of all kinds of illnesses.
Homeopathy assists the body’s natural healing process and brings about a relief which is quick, safe and very long-lasting.
Homoeopathic treatment helps in the gentle way to eliminate peptic ulcer disease.
Homeopathy helps in maintaining normal balance between mucosal protection/repair and aggressive factors in treatment for peptic ulcer disease.
Homeopathic treatment for peptic ulcer disease acts on the root cause of the disease which reduces the intensity and frequency of symptoms and relapses.
Few of our amazing remedies include:
- HYDRASTIS CANADENSE: Severe pain in stomach after eating with frequent vomiting of food. Sore feeling with weak digestion. Bitter taste in mouth.
- IPECAC: Constant nausea and vomiting of yellow mucus. Vomit food, bile, blood. Worse periodically; worse after meat.
- KALI CARBONICUM: Burning acidity rising from stomach, with some spasmodic constriction. Bloating, sour eructations and nausea with disgust for food.
If pain in stomach, nausea and vomiting has become a routine for you, do not ignore it by popping pain killers or antacids and medicines to stop your vomiting. They might be doing you more harm than good. Get yourself tested, because it is possible you might be suffering from Peptic Ulcer Disease.
Peptic ulcer disease is common condition throughout the world. In United States alone around 4 million individuals are affected. An estimated 15,000 deaths per year occur as a consequence of complication of peptic ulcers.
Peptic ulcer can occur at any age, although they are rare in children.
It is always better to start your treatment as soon as possible before it starts hampering your day-to-day activities and leads to complications.
Following are most common symptoms of Peptic Ulcer disease. It should be noted that each individual may experience symptoms of peptic ulcer disease differently.
Abdominal Pain: Epigastric pain, described as a burning or gnawing discomfort. Pain increased by food. In Duodenal Ulcer, pain occurs 90 min to 3 hours after a meal and is frequently relieved by antacids or food.
Heartburn: Reverse flow of acid into esophagus leads to heartburn, usually described as burning pain in the middle of the chest.
- Abdominal Fullness and bloating: Abdominal fullness and bloating is noted after meals.
- Loss of appetite: This is commonly seen in gastric ulcer. In gastric ulcer, loss of appetite is mainly due to fear of pain, as pain is induced by eating food. This leads to weight loss.
- Nausea and weight loss: It is more common in gastric ulcer.
- Hematemesis or vomiting of blood: It can occur due to bleeding from gastric ulcer or from injury to esophagus due to persistent vomiting.
- Melena: Tarry stools or coffee ground emesis indicate bleeding in the gastro-intestinal tract. These are leading symptoms of Peptic Ulcer disease.
Helicobacter Pylori: Gastric infection with the bacterium H. pylori accounts for the majority of cases of Peptic Ulcer Disease. Transmission of H. pylori occurs from person to person, following an oral-oral or fecal-oral route. This is an important factor among causes of Peptic Ulcer disease.
NSAIDs-induced : Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs (NSAIDs) are one of the most commonly used conventional medicines. NSAIDs changes surface mucous layer and makes it vulnerable to injury. This is one of the striking causes of Peptic Ulcer disease.
Genetic: Genetic predisposition has also been considered to play a role in ulcer development. First-degree relatives of Duodenal Ulcer patients are three times as likely to develop an ulcer.
Chilies: Capsaicin, the active principle of chilies, causes shedding of surface cells and increases acid secretion when infused in the stomach. Physicians all around the world agree that peptic ulcer is reduced by avoiding chilies.
Tobacco: Cigarette smoking damages mucosal lining of stomach by interfering with protective factors and increases acid secretion. Chronic inflammation of stomach mucosa and ulcers have been noticed in heavy smokers. This is one of the significant causes of Peptic Ulcer disease.
Other causes of Peptic Ulcer Disease: Mental tension, brooding, frustrations and inner resentment related to family matters or place of work predispose an individual to ulcer, also contribute to the perpetuation of symptoms and subsequent recurrences.
Gastrointestinal Bleeding: It is the most common complication observed in PUD. It is more common in people over 60 yrs of age. Increased use of Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) in elderly may indicate higher incidence. It occurs in around 15% patients of Peptic Ulcer. 20% of patients with ulcer-related hemorrhage bleed without any preceding warning signs or symptoms.
Perforation: It is second most common complication of Peptic Ulcer. Around 6 to 7% of people suffering from peptic ulcers get this complication. This is also more common in elderly patients, likely due to increased use of NSAIDs.
Gastric Outlet Obstruction: It is a rare complication which is seen in 1 to 2% of patients. A patient may have relative obstruction secondary to ulcer-related inflammation and edema in the peri-pyloric region. This process often resolves with ulcer healing. Signs and symptoms relative to mechanical obstruction may develop insidiously.
Scar tissue formation: Persistent inflammation and edema may lead to scar tissue formation. This can cause fixed, mechanical obstruction in pyloric area.
Penetration: Penetration is form of perforation. In this, ulcer bed tunnels into an adjacent organ. Gastric ulcer tends to penetrate in liver. Duodenal ulcer tends to penetrate in pancreas, leading to pancreatitis.
- Homeopathy is proficient in management of Peptic Ulcer symptoms and has good success rate in treatment of peptic ulcers.
- Homeopathic treatment for Peptic Ulcer disease reestablishes normal balance between mucosal protection/repair and aggressive factors, thereby curing the ulcer.
- Homeopathic treatment for Peptic Ulcer disease also helps in prevention of relapse of peptic ulcer. Holistic homeopathic treatment for Peptic ulcer disease gives complete well being to the patient by eliminating root cause of disease.
Few of our amazing remedies include:
- HYDRASTIS CANADENSE: Severe pain in stomach after eating with frequent vomiting of food. Sore feeling with weak digestion. Bitter taste in mouth.
- IPECAC: Constant nausea and vomiting of yellow mucus. Vomit food, bile, blood. Worse periodically; worse after meat.
- KALI CARBONICUM: Burning acidity rising from stomach, with some spasmodic constriction. Bloating, sour eructations and nausea with disgust for food.
Homeopathy has more than 100 effective remedies for treatment and prevention of Peptic Ulcers.
The remedy abbreviations with
- 4 marks- most effective,
- 3 marks- quite effective,
- 2 marks- less effective,
- 1 mark- least effective
Do’s
- Consume food at regular intervals. In general, take small meals every 3 hours.
- Take meal 2 to 3 hours before bed time.
- Eat food slowly and chew it properly.
- Take fresh fruits, salads and vegetables in adequate quantities.
Don’ts
- Avoid intake of spicy and sour food.
- Cut down intake of coffee, tea and other caffeine containing beverages.
- Stop alcohol intake, cigarette smoking and tobacco chewing.
- Restrict intake of fried and oily food.
- NSAIDs group of drugs should be taken only on the advice of qualified physician. Stop self-medication of these drugs.
- Eat smaller meals at regular intervals. In general, snack or meal should be taken every 3 hours.
- Include good sources of fiber like Vegetables, fruits, oatmeal, nuts, dried beans and peas at each meal.
- Spicy foods can make symptoms of peptic ulcer worse. Avoiding them during exacerbation of symptoms is necessary for successful treatment.
- Restrict the intake of Sour foods (for e.g. Tamarind) and unripe citrus fruits like oranges, sweet lime, lemon etc. These food items aggravate peptic discomfort.
- Coffee stimulates gastric acid secretion and alcohol can cause gastritis. So, Drink Coffee and alcohol in moderation or avoid.