The stomach is a hollow muscular organ that performs an important function in the body related to digestion. The process of digesting food is quite complicated, so any diseases of the stomach and duodenum can adversely affect the functioning of the whole organism and cause serious disruptions in other systems. In the digestive chain, this organ takes the second place, while special enzymes and acids are secreted in it.
The causes of stomach diseases are negative external influences on the body. These include:
- stressful situations that affect the reduction in the formation of gastric juice;
- nervous breakdowns that can cause loss of appetite and even anorexia;
- poor quality food, diet abuse;
- poisoning with toxic substances.
There are other causes of stomach ailments. Symptoms and treatment depend on the type ofdisease. The most common complaints of the patient are cramping pains, frequent bouts of nausea, heartburn and a burning sensation in the throat caused by an increased level of acidity in the stomach.
Main diseases of the stomach
Diseases of the stomach and duodenum are almost every person. They have different degrees of development and severity. Nutritionists say that the he alth of the stomach is reflected in a person's lifestyle, his tastes and habits. Some diseases develop slowly, while others arise abruptly, suddenly and rapidly. Sometimes signs of gastric ailments develop so rapidly that the patient needs urgent hospitalization.
The main symptoms of gastric diseases include pain in the hypochondrium on the right side, which increase during meals or, conversely, when the patient is hungry. In more complex forms, the pain acquires a constant aching character with paroxysmal outbreaks. Self-medication only exacerbates the inflammatory process and contributes to the development of more serious types of stomach disease. Symptoms, treatment for each type of disease have their own characteristics. For example, with an ulcer, a characteristic symptom is belching with a sour smell, and for gastritis, the appearance of heartburn is more common. Sometimes, with diseases, gastric bleeding occurs, and meals can be accompanied by sudden bouts of vomiting. Treatment of stomach ailments depends on the severity of the patient's condition, the nature of the disease and its clinical manifestations.
Gastritis
Gastritis is called inflammation of the mucous membranestomach, which occurs due to exposure to bacteria, malnutrition, alcoholism, as well as the abuse of diets and starvation (especially snacking on sandwiches and eating dry food), spices and spicy foods. The most common symptoms of this stomach disease (treatment and signs of gastritis depend on the causes that cause it) are characterized by an increased level of acidity, heartburn, sore throat when swallowing. In addition, the signs of gastritis include intestinal upset: constipation or, conversely, diarrhea. If the cause of gastritis is pathogenic bacteria, then it progresses quite quickly, erosion and destruction of the walls of the gastric muscle are noted.
In addition, the cause may be an acute autoimmune process, when the body perceives its own stomach as something alien. Antibodies produced by the body begin to attack it and corrode the walls and mucous membranes. During the treatment of the disease, it is important to take medications only after meals, when gastric juice is produced. In this case, the patient must be prescribed a diet for stomach disease, which completely excludes the use of alcoholic beverages, spicy, spicy and fatty foods. Diagnosis is by endoscopy.
Peptic ulcer: symptoms, treatment
Destruction of the walls of the stomach leads to peptic ulcer, which is characterized by an increased amount of acid and bile produced. Ulcers can be both single and numerous. Causes of the diseaseare the following factors:
- malnutrition (dry snacks, lack of first courses in the diet);
- alcohol, smoking;
- taking certain medications;
- stress, nervous shocks;
- violation of the regime of work and rest.
The main symptom of gastric ulcer is violent belching with a characteristic sour smell. Other symptoms include nausea, pain in the hypochondrium, loss of appetite, and rapid weight loss. Complications of gastric ulcer are the risk of gastric bleeding, perforation or penetration of the stomach, as well as the development of pyloric stenosis. Treatment of both peptic ulcer disease and its complications is mainly performed by surgery.
Complications of peptic ulcer disease
Untimely or inadequate treatment of an ulcer can lead to some complications of this disease. The most common include those mentioned above - perforation, penetration, bleeding and pyloric stenosis.
Ulcer bleeding is characterized by hematemesis and the presence of blood in the stool. If the ulcer is localized above the ligament of Treitz, then the patient is more likely to experience vomiting, if below, then black (bloody) stools. In this case, the patient's hemoglobin rapidly decreases. First aid at home involves washing the stomach with cold water and applying an ice pack to the stomach. Drug treatment includes the use of H2-blockers, Novocain and Adrenaline drugs,liquid fibrinogen, "Secretin" and other medicines. In difficult cases, surgery is performed.
Perforated gastric ulcer is a serious complication. Symptoms include acute pain of a “dagger” nature, tension in the muscles of the anterior abdominal wall, bradycardia, epigastric pain, pallor of the skin, positive Shchetkin-Blumberg syndrome. 5-8 hours after perforation, the disease of the stomach ulcer can acquire a different form of complication - peritonitis (inflammation of the peritoneum). Characteristic signs of this condition of the patient include a thready rapid pulse, hypotension, dynamic intestinal obstruction, fever and leukocytosis. Later, flatulence, urinary and stool retention are added to the symptoms, and in more rare cases, vomiting occurs. Laparoscopy can be used to treat a perforated ulcer.
Penetration is the spread of an ulcer into the tissues surrounding the stomach. At the same time, several stages of such a complication of gastric ulcer are distinguished:
- necrosis through all layers of the hollow organ and duodenum;
- fibrous fusion with organs adjacent to the stomach or duodenum;
- penetration of an ulcer into the tissues of adjacent organs.
The diagnosis is made using an X-ray or an endoscope, which is typical for any stomach disease. Symptoms and treatment are closely related. The clinical picture is caused by intense pain of a permanent nature, nausea and vomiting, which tend to increase. There are also symptomsinflammatory process: high level of ESR, leukocytosis, subfebrile temperature. Treatment is usually surgical.
Under the pyloric stenosis understand the localization of the ulcer in the duodenum and pyloric canal. Violation of patency is aggravated by inflammation and spasm of the pylorus. A similar complication is one of the severe forms of stomach disease. The symptoms and treatment of this type of peptic ulcer depend on whether the process is recurrent. With a relapse, the patient develops a bursting feeling in the epigastric region, nausea, bouts of vomiting, and a sharp decrease in weight. Treatment in this case is always only surgical.
Gastric adenocarcinoma or glandular cancer
Adenocarcinoma in medical practice is quite common. As a rule, the tumor is localized in the antrum or pylorus of the stomach. The most common cause of the disease is excessive consumption of foods high in nitrites.
At an early stage, adenocarcinoma is manifested by nausea, heaviness in the stomach, lack of appetite and rapid weight loss, intestinal upset. Immediately after taking a small amount of food, the patient develops a bursting feeling at the site of the solar plexus, which indicates the presence of an intramural tumor. With oncology of the cardinal department, food does not pass into the duodenum, which is accompanied by vomiting. Advanced cases of cancer are accompanied by pain in the epigastric region, with the collapse of the tumorinternal bleeding occurs, which is detected by the presence of blood in the stool, bloody vomiting. Treatment of oncological diseases of the stomach is carried out surgically total (resection of the entire stomach) and subtotal (resection of its part).
Stomach bulbitis
Pain in the stomach always means the presence of some kind of pathology. Feeling of heaviness, heartburn, nausea are considered signs of gastritis. Usually the patient takes medications on his own, which “suppress” the symptoms, but do not cure the disease itself. Aggravation of gastritis extends to the duodenum and is called bulbitis.
Bulbitis is catarrhal and erosive and is a type of inflammatory disease of the stomach. Symptoms, treatment of such an ailment are repeatedly described in the special literature. The disease is accompanied by nausea, vomiting, severe pain, a feeling of bitterness in the mouth. Pain falsely resembles attacks of pancreatitis.
Antacids, such as Gastal, Almagel A, will help relieve pain. They are able to neutralize the destructive effect of the ejected bile and acid, and the main method of treatment is a diet for stomach disease. During an exacerbation of the disease, you should immediately stop taking all medications, stop smoking, coffee, alcohol. Fasting, abuse of diets for weight loss, and taking dietary supplements are strictly prohibited.
Erosion of the stomach
GastricWednesday. But by its nature and chemical composition, it is quite aggressive; at the slightest malfunction in the body, it causes serious damage to human he alth. The main task of the gastric juice is to break down and digest food, the quality of which, unfortunately, often leaves much to be desired. As a result of such contact, irritation of the gastric mucosa often occurs and single or multiple erosions or sores appear.
The causes of erosion include the following negative factors:
- bad irregular meals;
- chronic diseases of the stomach;
- nervous disorders, stress and more.
Such pathologies are divided into three groups:
- primary erosion;
- secondary erosion;
- oncology.
At the same time, according to the form of the disease, it can be both acute and chronic. The symptomatology of erosion is typical for all diseases of the stomach, but the risk of its transition to ulcer is very high. Treatment of erosive phenomena takes a long time and depends on many different factors. The nature of the pathology, the root cause of the disease, and so on are taken into account. Antibacterial therapy is ineffective for erosion of the stomach and is used only if the disease is caused by an infection. Drug therapy is necessarily supported by a strict diet, especially if the stomach hurts. Diseases, the symptoms of which are characterized by nausea and vomiting, are not recommended to be treated with medicines, as some of them can destroy the inflamed walls even morebody.
Carcinoma of the stomach
Carcinoma of the stomach is a malignant formation that occurs as a result of many provoking factors. The risk group most often includes male patients over 40 years of age who have a history of polyps in the stomach, peptic ulcers and chronic gastritis. The abuse of products with carcinogens, as well as alcohol and smoking, can provoke the disease. Excessive s alt intake also causes pathological inflammation of the mucous membranes. The hereditary factor is also important.
Symptoms of carcinoma are increased fatigue of the patient, apathy, lack of appetite and aversion to certain products. A person quickly loses weight, weakens, he is constantly tormented by heaviness in the stomach, there is a sudden vomiting. A blood test shows increased leukocytosis, the content of myelocytes and myeloblasts. For diagnosis, x-rays, ultrasound, tomography and biopsy of the stomach are used. Treatment is medical and surgical. Conservative medicine involves the use of painkillers and antiemetics, vitamins and anticancer drugs.
Prevention of stomach ulcers of this type is to follow a diet, avoid stress and nervous shocks, give up low-quality alcohol products, smoking and other bad habits.
Expediency of alternative treatment of peptic ulcers
Many people are afraid of surgical techniques when their stomach hurts. Diseases, the symptoms of which have been discussed above, can be treated by methods alternative medicine. Additional alternative therapies, chosen in conjunction with the treating physician, may provide the patient with relief from symptoms and reduce mucosal inflammation. Unfortunately, with the help of alternative therapy, not all stomach diseases can be defeated. Symptoms and treatment with folk remedies of any disease must be discussed with a doctor, since sometimes such therapy can not only be irrational, but can also significantly harm the patient. For example, oncological diseases, as well as perforation, peritonitis, perforation and other severe forms require immediate surgical intervention. Any postponement of the operation threatens the patient with death.
Other types of stomach ulcers, symptoms, treatment of folk remedies which were discussed with the doctor, may well recede when using various decoctions of medicinal plants. A good remedy is a tincture of aconite root, celandine, potato flowers and calendula. Decoctions of strawberries, calamus, corn stigmas help relieve inflammation. Each patient is treated with folk remedies individually.
Prevention of peptic ulcers
Prevention of stomach diseases is an important part of the treatment process. The patient needs to eat right, avoid s alty, spicy, spices, completely give up coffee, alcohol, and smoking. To control the symptoms of diseases, as well as prevent their occurrence, you should eat often, in small portions. Skipping meals is highly undesirable, but overeating threatensinflammatory processes. Do not swallow food in large, poorly chewed pieces.
Treatment of diseases of the stomach is complex and the risk of various complications. That is why it is better to take care of your he alth and avoid such problems. Prevention of stomach ulcers includes simple measures. You should try to avoid various stressful situations, practice relaxation methods, meditation, observe the regime of work and rest. Physical fitness is important. Simple physical exercises help keep muscles in good shape.
