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Guidelines for sites linking to mayoclinic.orgGastroenterolgy specialists at Mayo Clinic are known for their thorough diagnosis and treatment of peptic ulcers. Mayo Clinic doctors treat more than 2,200 patients for peptic ulcers each year.
The most prominent symptom of a peptic ulcer is abdominal pain. Endoscopies are used to ascertain if a patient has an ulcer and biopsies determine if a patient has bacteria that is associated with peptic ulcer disease. Breath, stool or blood tests may also be used to detect the bacteria. Read more about peptic ulcer diagnosis.
Doctors at Mayo Clinic use treatments to reduce the level of acid in the digestive system, relieve pain and encourage healing. A bacterial infection or medication, not stress or diet, causes most ulcers. Ulcers can often be cured in two to four weeks. Read more about peptic ulcer treatment options.
Ulcer is a medical term for an open sore, and a peptic ulcer is a sore in the lining of the stomach or small intestine. Left untreated, peptic ulcers can cause internal bleeding (bleeding ulcer). Peptic ulcers may even perforate the wall of the stomach or small intestine. Peptic ulcers are often painful, but not always.
Five to 10 percent of Americans experience a peptic ulcer during their lifetime, but the rate of bacterial infections that cause some peptic ulcers seems to be dropping in the United States. Some factors that make people more prone to developing a peptic ulcer include:
About 90 percent of peptic ulcers heal within one to three months. An ulcer may fail to heal for many reasons, such as when someone does not take medications according to directions. Smoking and the use of alcohol or nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) can irritate or inflame the lining of your stomach and small intestine. Nonprescription NSAIDs include aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin) and naproxen (Aleve). In other cases, some H. pylori bacteria are resistant to antibiotics. In rare cases, refractory ulcers (ulcers that fail to heal) may result from extreme overproduction of stomach acid, or from other digestive diseases, including Crohn's disease or cancer.
Read more at www.MayoClinic.com (A service of Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research).
Most ulcers are related to infection by the H. pylori bacterium, although most people with H. pylori infection do not get peptic ulcers. See Questions and Answers about H. pylori.
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