Stomach ulcers, also known as gastric ulcers, are painful sores in your stomach lining. Stomach ulcers are a type of peptic ulcer disease. Peptic ulcers are any ulcers that can affect both the small intestines and stomach.
Stomach ulcers occur when the thick layer of mucus that is protecting your stomach from digestive juices is reduced. This allows the digestive acids to consume at the tissues that line the stomach, therefore causing an ulcer.
Stomach ulcers may be easily cured, but can become severe without proper medical treatment.
Signs of Stomach Ulcer:
1. Back or Chest Pain
Pain from stomach ulcer can radiate to the back or chest. If the ulcer has penetrated through the bowel wall, the pain can become more longer in duration, severe and harder to alleviate.
Ulcers can also cause perforation, where the lining of the stomach splits open, in which you may experience severe and sudden stomach pain that continually gets worse. You should go to the hospital, immediately.
2. Blood Vomit or Poop
Ulcers can bleed and may cause vomiting, in particular, vomiting of material that looks like coffee grounds or blood, according to Sophie Balzora, MD, gastroenterologist and assistant professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center.
The poop may also become black in color, which, can be indicative of digested blood. Both of these are signs that require urgent medical attention.
3. Heavy Abdomen
It is common as an ulcer develops to feel a sensation of fullness or heaviness in the belly, similar to the burdensome feeling you get after drinking lots of water.
4. Heartburn or Regurgitation
Due to the fact that the ulcer is being perpetually doused in acid, stomach pain can often be paired with regurgitation, that feeling of acid backing up into your throat and chronic heartburn. Other symptoms, such as burping, bloating or feeling permanently full, may also be experience.
If taking OTC or over-the-counter antacid only relieves symptoms temporarily, or it strikes no matter what you eat, you may want to discuss this with your doctor.
5. Increased Indigestion
Stomach ulcer can cause terrible gas pain and indigestion, which usually means hiccupping and burping following meals.
6. Nausea
Because of an imbalance of digestive juices, you will likely feel mild to severe nausea with an ulcer, typically in the morning, on an empty stomach.
7. Stomach Pain
Stomach pain, is the most common stomach ulcer symptom is, which is typically a pain, dull and burning sensation in the mid-abdominal area. Ulcers are literally sores in the lining of the stomach or small bowel. The pain classically presents in relation to acid secretion in the intestines. The pain usually peaks between meals and at night time, when acid has been secreted into the stomach, and there is no food to act as a buffer.
Taking antacids can temporarily relieve the pain, but it will keep coming back until the ulcer is treated.
Read More:
1. What You Should Know About Anorexia Nervosa
2. Know More About Irritable Bowel Syndrome
3. Top 5 Health Threats to Men
photo credit: liverdoctor