As a digestive doctor, people often ask me: “I have a bad stomach, should I take some what medicine?” ] [How should stomach trouble be treated? For this kind of problem, sometimes I would say, go to the hospital for examination.
This is really not perfunctory, stomach trouble, really not as simple as everyone imagined.
Gastropathy, why is it so complicated?
All diseases occurring in the stomach can be called [stomach diseases], from common acute and chronic gastritis, gastric ulcer to rare gastric cancer, all are [stomach diseases]. However, the key is that the symptoms of these stomach diseases are the same, so from the symptoms of [stomachache] and [stomach distension], sometimes it is really impossible to determine what kind of stomach diseases the patient has.
Why is this? First of all, we must start with the structure and function of the stomach.
The stomach is usually like a flat balloon, which will slowly grow larger after eating. The entrance and exit of the stomach are like the mouth of a balloon, which is usually closed tightly. When there is food stimulation, they will loosen and allow food to pass through.
The stomach grinds large pieces of food into small pieces through regular exercise. At the same time, it digests and decomposes these small pieces of food into smaller chyme and molecules by producing gastric acid and pepsin, and then sends chyme into the small intestine through exercise.
Have you ever thought that the stomach can digest food, why can’t you digest yourself? That is because the mucosa on the surface of the stomach can produce some substances, which accumulate on the mucosa surface to form a protective film to prevent gastric acid from entering the stomach wall, thus playing a protective role.
How did stomach trouble come about?
- If people lack exercise or are anxious and depressed, the movement of the stomach will slow down. Food stays in the stomach for a longer time, stimulating the continuous production of gastric acid, destroying the protective layer of gastric mucosa, and causing inflammation and ulcer in the stomach. If the stomach moves in the opposite direction, Bile reflux may occur, Food can even flow back to the esophagus, and this reverse movement and bile stimulation can also cause inflammation in the stomach. The stomach can be repaired like skin after a wound occurs. If the adverse stimulation persists, the repair function of the stomach may go wrong, forming gastric polyps, thickening the stomach wall, causing obstruction and even gastric cancer and other adverse consequences.
It can be seen from this that gastritis, gastric ulcer, gastric cancer and other stomach diseases can have a common onset process, and naturally they can also have similar symptoms such as stomachache and distension.
When it comes to symptoms, everyone feels differently. Some gastritis patients may have obvious stomachache reaction although inflammation is not severe. However, some patients with gastric ulcer and even gastric cancer have no stomachache or distension from beginning to end. Finally, it may be because of emaciation or black stool that they come to the hospital for examination and find the problem.
Gastropathy is really not that simple.
Delayed treatment does great harm.
For those who think they have [stomach trouble], it is best not to use drugs at will, or to go to the hospital for examination. The significance of the examination lies in determining whether it is stomach trouble and what kind of stomach trouble it is. Then the doctor will carry out different treatments according to the results of the examination.
Self-medication may be effective for some patients, but some patients only temporarily relieve the symptoms, and the disease condition is not controlled in time, resulting in repeated attacks or even aggravation of the symptoms, eventually delaying the diagnosis and treatment of the disease.
For example, for patients with gastric ulcer, if timely and standardized treatment is not carried out, some ulcers will lead to complications such as perforation, hemorrhage and even canceration. Some ulcers of gastric antrum and pyloric tube, if not treated in time, can cause stenosis and obstruction of pylorus (the junction of stomach and intestine). These diseases, which could have been cured by taking medicine, have been dragged to the point where surgery is needed, which is naturally very regrettable.
Another example is gastric cancer patients, early gastric cancer, some can not operate, only need to do minimally invasive treatment under gastroscope, the 5-year survival rate of such patients can reach more than 90%. However, if it is not handled in time, gastric cancer will develop to the middle and late stages, and the survival rate will be greatly reduced.
Old stomach diseases sometimes need to be treated.
Influenced by the traditional saying [three treatments and seven treatments], many people think that stomach diseases cannot be cured but can only be nurtured. This idea is also wrong. Some [old stomach diseases] may not be as stubborn as you think.
Some functional diseases, such as functional dyspepsia, are really difficult to treat because they are greatly affected by mental and psychological factors. However, many [old stomach diseases] can be cured. The most typical of these is stomach diseases caused by Helicobacter pylori infection.
Most patients with gastric ulcer have Helicobacter pylori infection. Without eradication of Helicobacter pylori, more than half of the patients will have recurrent gastric ulcer. After standardized eradication of Helicobacter pylori, gastric ulcer symptoms can be relieved and recurrence rate can be significantly reduced.
Some good living habits, such as regular diet, quitting smoking and drinking, and proper exercise, are of course very beneficial to the health of the gastrointestinal tract. However, after problems occur, don’t think that [gastropathy depends on nourishment but not treatment], just blindly nourishing the stomach, sometimes still need the standard diagnosis and treatment of modern medicine!
Responsible Editor: Zhang Jingyuan