Symptoms of various stomach problems

Gastric disease is a relatively common disease. Speaking of gastric disease is a relatively general term. For example, ulcer disease, chronic gastritis, gastritis, duodenal ulcer, etc. are all relatively common diseases. When stomach problems occur, there are many symptoms, such as nausea and vomiting, acid reflux, constipation and diarrhea, etc. These are common symptoms of stomach problems. Let us learn about this aspect.

1. Ulcer disease

Upper abdominal pain, located below the xiphoid process (pit of the heart) or around the midline of the upper abdomen, presents as burning, gnawing or hunger-like dull pain, bloating or dull pain. But sometimes it is limited to the lower chest cavity. The pain will last from half an hour to three hours after it occurs. After several weeks of intermittent pain, there will be a brief pain-free period.

This pain is diet-related and is often triggered by hunger, medication, or acidic food or drinks. The pain can be relieved by eating, drinking water, or taking alkaline foods (such as steamed bread). Other possible symptoms are heartburn, acid vomiting, belching, loss of appetite, weight loss, anemia, occasional vomiting that relieves the pain, and black or tarry stools.

The duration of each attack varies. About half of them last 2-4 weeks, while the rest may be as short as a few days and as long as 8-10 weeks. The remission period between attacks also varies in length, some are 1-3 months, some are shorter, and some are longer. Occasionally, the remission period after an attack can last for more than ten years. During the remission period, the patient can eat whatever he wants without pain. In many cases, this cyclical attack is seasonal, often occurring in spring and autumn and easing in summer and winter, which is related to climate change.

3. Ulcerative colitis

It is a diffuse inflammation of the colon and rectal mucosa, and its clinical characteristics are unexplained, intermittent scurvy diarrhea. It is difficult to imagine such a devastating disease without an identifiable cause or a specific medical treatment. Although the disease can be completely cured by removing all diseased colon and rectum, the price to pay will be the possibility of having an abdominal ileostomy for life. Chronic ulcerative colitis is a disease that occurs throughout the world, but is more common in Western countries. The incidence rate is 5-12/100,000, and the prevalence rate is 50-150/100,000. There are slightly more women than men. The age of onset shows a bimodal distribution, with the first peak at 15 to 30 years old and the second peak at 50 to 70 years old, and the majority of cases occur in the first peak.

4. Chronic superficial gastritis lacks specific symptoms

The severity of symptoms is not consistent with the degree of gastric mucosal lesions. Most patients are often asymptomatic or have varying degrees of indigestion symptoms such as upper abdominal pain, loss of appetite, fullness after meals, acid reflux, etc. Some patients with mucosal erosion have more obvious upper abdominal pain and may have bleeding.

5. Heartburn and acid reflux are the most common symptoms of reflux esophagitis.

Dysphagia and odynophagia. Some patients have dysphagia. Retrosternal pain, pain occurs behind the sternum or under the xiphoid process.