Stomach Ulcer Symptoms

The symptoms of stomach ulcer play a crucial role in the diagnosis of this condition. The problem however, is that these symptoms are often ignored as they are mistaken for stomach ache in the initial stages. Misdiagnoses of these symptoms delays the treatment procedure, in turn, and causes the person's condition to deteriorate further. In order to rule out the chances of misdiagnoses (and the treatment delay due to it), one has to have a basic understanding of stomach ulcers - especially their causes and symptoms.

What is a Stomach Ulcer?
Stomach ulcer, also referred to as the 'gastric ulcer', is a type of peptic ulcer which is caused by the Helicobacter pylori bacterium. Peptic ulcers are classified into four different types on the basis of the region in which they occur:

• Duodenal ulcer which occurs in duodenum
• Esophageal ulcer which occurs in the esophagus
• Gastric ulcer which occurs in the stomach (and hence is referred to as stomach ulcer.)
• Meckel's diverticulum ulcer which occurs in the Meckel's diverticulum.

The most common of all are the duodenum ulcers, while stomach ulcers come close second. In case of stomach ulcer, the damage begins when the H. pylori bacterium starts to weaken and break the protective lining of the stomach as a result of which the soft tissue below this lining gets exposed and comes directly in contact with the stomach acid. As the stomach acid is very strong, it keeps irritating the soft tissue, and the constant irritation eventually causes a bad sore/an ulcer.

What are the Symptoms of Stomach Ulcer?
If the symptoms of stomach ulcer are diagnosed early, the spread of this ulcer can be arrested and it can be cured fully within a short span of time. On the contrary, turning a blind eye to these symptoms of ulcer can lead to its spread in the surrounding area, and cause a lot of pain and discomfort to the individual. Unrestricted, the spread of stomach ulcer can result in serious damage to the health - to an extent that the person can end up being under constant medication.

Early Signs of Stomach Ulcer
By far the most common symptom of stomach ulcer is the throbbing pain in the stomach, and the constant discomfort associated with it. The pain, accompanied by burning sensation, may come and go all of sudden for no apparent reason at all. It will usually subside when you eat something, and gradually start again 2 to 3 hours after you are done. You won't experience pain right after the dinner, but it is likely to flare somewhere in the middle of the night. Other than pain, you will experience bloating, sudden loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, fatigue, weakness and heartburn. While all these symptoms may not necessarily point out to stomach ulcer, it is better to get your diagnosed for this condition and eliminate all your doubts about it.

Advanced Symptoms of Stomach Ulcer
At times, none of the symptoms of peptic ulcer are observed initially even when the ulcer is present and spreading in the stomach. However, more advanced symptoms, which are quite serious in nature, may start surfacing in the later stages as a result of the extensive damage caused to the stomach lining and rupture of tissue. These symptoms include vomiting blood of a dark brown color, passing stools containing blood, unexplained weight loss, etc. These symptoms will be accompanied by stinging pain in the stomach which will simply refuse to go. These peptic ulcer symptoms, which usually emerge towards the later stages of this condition, are very serious in nature, and one should seek medical attention as soon as they begin surfacing. Even at this point of time, the condition is totally curable - provided medical help is sought immediately.

How Can Stomach Ulcer be Cured?
If H. pylori is found to be the cause of your stomach ulcer, the doctor will prescribe antibiotics to get rid of the bacteria. At the same time, the doctor will also prescribe medication to coat the ulcer and reduce stomach acid to a minimum so as to ensure speedy recovery. The dosage will depend on the severity of the infection. If it is just the initial stage of peptic ulcer, the medication and dosage will be minimal. On the other hand, if the ulcers have started spreading, then the treatment will involve higher doses of medication. These high doses of medication will have their own side effects in form of a foul taste in the mouth, loss of appetite, vomiting, diarrhea, and headache. Not everybody will experience all these stomach ulcer symptoms though. Treatment will continue for two to three weeks, in course of which the person will start feeling better. However, it will take a couple of months (with the right medication of course) for the person to get cured completely.

It is better to avoid alcohol, smoking, taking any sort of aspirin, and eating spicy food until you are totally cured, as doing this is more likely to aggravate and speed up the ulcer forming process. Many people believe that stomach ulcer is caused as a result of eating spicy food, which is not at all true. Spicy food can't cause stomach ulcers. It can aggravate an already existing ulcer though, and thus is best avoided when you know that you have a stomach ulcer.

Never try to take medication on your own - not even when these symptoms of gastric ulcer become very obvious. While antacids are effective in providing relief from stomach ulcer pain, one has to understand that this relief is temporary, and therefore even antacids are best avoided unless recommended by a doctor. Opting for wrong medication can just end up worsening your condition. As soon as you notice any of these stomach ulcer symptoms, you should contact your doctor and only take medication prescribed by him. Doing this will not just pave road for a speedy recovery, but will also make sure that this road to recovery is safe.