Stomach erosion: what it is, causes, symptoms and how to treat the disease

Gastroenterological pathology occupies one of the leading places in the structure of diseases. The clinical picture of erosive lesions of the gastrointestinal tract is closely related to the morphological state of the mucous membrane and the presence of defects on its surface. Therefore, the main question that arises among patients is how to cure gastric erosion and what it is. A gastroenterologist will help solve the problem, diagnosing symptoms and prescribing medication.

What is gastric erosion

Gastric erosion is a lesion of the stomach walls, accompanied by one or more ulcers, which can form on the lower surface of the walls, as shown in the image above.

Often pathology develops in the process of chronic diseases, such as liver failure.

Determining the cause of erosion is possible only with a complete diagnostic study.

Specialist recommendation

Therapeutic prevention of ulcerative-erosive lesions of the stomach, first of all, consists of observing the standards of high-quality and balanced nutrition. A person’s daily menu should contain food products with enveloping activity on the gastric mucosa. Treatment of clinical conditions is effective only at the initial stage of the disease. Before treating chronic gastric erosion with traditional or traditional medicine, it is necessary to undergo high-quality endoscopic diagnosis.

Take care of yourself and always be healthy!

Classification

There are a large number of types of erosions:

• By quantity: single. There are up to 3 wounds;
• multiple. There are more than 3 foci of mucosal lesions; they can be located in different parts of the stomach.

Varieties

Depending on what external and internal factors caused the inflammation, as well as the location of the erosion foci, several types of the disease are distinguished:

1. Erosive gastritis in chronic form is characterized by alternating periods of exacerbation and remission. The formations reach 5-7 millimeters in size.
2. Antral gastritis is caused by bacterial infection and harmful microorganisms. It affects the lower part of the stomach adjacent to the intestines.
3. Reflux gastritis is a severe form of the disease, which is characterized by detachment of the mucous membrane. In this case, severe vomiting is observed, mixed with particles of dead tissue. Ulcers increase in size up to 10 millimeters.
4. The erosive-hemorrhagic form of the disease is complicated by bleeding, which is likely to result in death.

The last type of erosive gastritis is the most dangerous.
In this case, the damage to the mucous membrane reaches the depth of the vascular bed. The structure and characteristics of small capillaries are individual for each person. Therefore, with the same diagnosis, the likelihood of bleeding is unequal.

The risk group includes patients suffering from high blood pressure, bleeding disorders, as well as patients taking anticoagulants or non-steroidal analgesics.

Causes of gastric erosion

The main reasons lie in the disruption of the special balance between the acidic environment of the stomach and the protective layer.

Those. hydrochloric acid, which is contained in gastric juice, begins to corrode the mucous membrane, causing damage to the surface; as a result of this process, gastric erosion is formed.

Factors causing a malfunction in the smooth operation of the protective mechanism:

• surgical interventions on the digestive tract;
• result of injuries, burns;
• emotional disorders;
• uncontrolled consumption of food that is too fatty, spicy, hot;
• consumption of large amounts of alcohol, painkillers and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs;
• smoking;
• decrease in the body’s immune forces against the background of inflammatory diseases;
• oncology;
• colonization of the bacterium Helicobacter pylori in the mucous membrane.

Symptoms of gastric erosion

The main symptom of erosion is severe pain and cramps in the abdominal cavity.

Painful sensations are slightly suppressed by painkillers, but the development of the disease continues to proceed just as rapidly. They are especially intensified after eating and at night.

You may also experience:

• nausea followed by vomiting;
• belching, heartburn after eating;
• indigestion;
• fragility of nails and hair (this is due to a decrease in hemoglobin due to bleeding erosions. Because of this, the skin may acquire a slightly bluish tint);
• general weakening of the body and increased fatigue;
• functional disorder of the biliary system;
• pain usually occurs 1-1.5 hours after a meal, which is why sometimes the patient may refuse food altogether;
• blood in feces and vomit. In this case, immediate medical attention is required!

Stages and signs

As erosion progresses, it goes through 3 stages:

Expert opinion

Shoshorin Yuri

General practitioner, site expert

After gastric erosion has gone through all three stages of its development, the next stage begins: the formation of deep ulcers and the development of peptic ulcers.

Diagnostics

The main study is endoscopic , during which a piece of the affected mucous membrane is taken (stomach biopsy). It is taken for further laboratory analysis to determine whether it is malignant.

Additionally, the doctor conducts a survey , during which it becomes clear when and how the symptoms of erosion appeared, what the nature of the disease is, primary or repeated.

An X-ray examination may be performed using a contrast agent, which accumulates in the areas of erosion. In terms of information content, it is inferior to endoscopic examination, because not all details are clearly visible.

Ultrasound allows you to assess the structural state of the organ and its activity, and can help identify foci of inflammation and erosion. The method is not very informative.

In addition, the doctor prescribes laboratory tests for biological fluids (blood, urine) and feces (for occult blood and the presence of Helicobacter pylori). After collecting information and analysis results, he decides how to treat erosion and conducts further monitoring of the patient’s condition.

How is the disease detected?

To determine the destruction of the gastric mucosa, their type and location, a hardware examination method, gastrofagoduodenoscopy, is used with the possible removal of part of the affected mucosa for examination.

One of the goals of diagnosis is to determine the occurrence of erosion against the background of concomitant diseases and to establish the absence of tumors in the stomach, ulcers or polyps.

The primary diagnosis is made by a doctor based on a survey of the patient and anamnesis. After hardware diagnostics is prescribed, the need for such a procedure is explained to the patient.

Gastroscopy, how it is performed

The gastroscope, the device used to carry out the examination, has a movable end that is inserted into the patient's mouth and then moves along the esophagus. It is equipped with an optical system that allows the doctor to visually examine the mucous membrane of the stomach, intestines and esophagus. Modern gastroscopy is performed painlessly for the patient. To suppress reflexes and fear, the doctor uses medications to relieve pain, calm the patient, and suppress the gag reflex.

Gastroscopy not only allows you to diagnose the disease; during the examination, the doctor can carry out therapeutic procedures to remove growths on the mucous membrane, which allows you to avoid full-fledged surgical interventions. The method is an alternative to fluoroscopy and can be performed even on children (under anesthesia).

The procedure is usually carried out in the morning, but if there is a need, or the doctor in the hospital is overloaded, the examination may be postponed to a later time. Eating on the day of the examination is prohibited, and drinking is also prohibited. On the eve of the examination, you can eat dinner, but the food should be light and not irritate the walls of the stomach and intestines.

If an examination is scheduled using anesthesia, then food should be taken no earlier than 12 hours before the appointed time. This will allow you to conduct a high-quality examination, avoid vomiting and food particles getting into the vomiting tract, and avoid repeated examinations.

The patient must stop taking antacid medications. Neutralization of hydrochloric acid will disrupt the natural picture of the disease and lead to a distorted picture of the study and incorrect diagnosis.

Before the procedure, you should stop taking aspirin and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, which thin the blood and can cause bleeding if a biopsy is necessary. Preliminary stabilizing treatment can be carried out for people suffering from allergies.

You can eat food 2-3 hours after the procedure; after this time, all symptoms of anesthesia will disappear.

Additional Research

In order to more accurately determine the damage to the mucous membranes, the following are prescribed:

• analytical studies of feces to detect hidden blood;
• general clinical blood test for hemoglobin and other blood parameters;
• biochemical blood test with mandatory determination of blood sugar levels;
• Ultrasound of the abdominal organs, in some cases computed tomography of this area.

In patients over 50 years of age with a long period of disease, a colonoscopy of the large intestine is performed.

The following types of erosion are distinguished:

• primary, caused by stomach pathology;
• secondary, arising against the background of systemic diseases;
• spicy;
• chronic;
• single;
• multiple;
• malignant.

Acute gastric erosions are distinguished by their location on the body and bottom of the organ, are painful and heal within 2 months, while chronic gastric erosions can be observed in the patient for five years and are noted in the final zone of the organ. When examined, erosions of the antrum of the stomach look like a localized group of wounds and ulcerations on the surface of the mucous membranes.

With multiple erosion, more than three destructions are located on the surface of the affected area of ​​the mucous membranes, with a single erosion - up to three. If more than 2/3 of the surface of the stomach is affected, bleeding (hemorrhagic) gastritis is diagnosed.

Treatment of gastric erosion

Symptoms and treatment are inextricably linked. Before starting therapy, it is necessary to find out whether the disease arose independently or as a result of some factors. Based on this, treatment is prescribed either for the erosion itself or for the underlying disease.

Treatment of erosion includes several areas:

• prescribing medications to treat the erosion itself, or the underlying disease that caused it;
• diet;
• procedures and surgeries as necessary;
• folk remedies as auxiliary.

Medicines

First of all, medications are prescribed that regulate the production of hydrochloric acid, the main component of gastric juice. In addition, medications are prescribed that relieve unpleasant symptoms: pain, cramps, nausea, vomiting, heartburn, sour belching.

The most popular medicines:

• antacids. They temporarily and reversibly reduce the acidity of gastric contents and protect the mucous walls of the organ. Gastal, Rennie, Almagel ;
• proton pump inhibitors. They reduce the production of hydrochloric acid. Omez , Nolpaza, Nexium ;
• H2-histamine receptor antagonists. They inhibit the secretion of juice (spontaneous and stimulated), reduce the secretion of pepsin (an enzyme of the digestive system). Ranitidine, Famotidine ;
• dopamine receptor blockers. They are used for indigestion, when the patient is constantly accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and a feeling of a full stomach. Motilium , all drugs based on domperidone;
• antibacterial drugs. If, in addition to erosion, the bacterium Helicobacter pylori is found in the stomach, then antibiotics are used to destroy it. Amoxicillin , Clarithromycin ;
• bismuth preparations. They have an anti-inflammatory and astringent effect, form a protective film on the surface of erosion, increase the resistance of the mucous membrane to the aggressive effects of gastric juice, which allows wounds to quickly heal. It also exhibits a bactericidal effect against Helicobacter pylori. De-nol, Ulkavis .

Folk remedies

For the treatment of erosion, traditional medicine offers many recipes, the effectiveness of which has been tested by time. We offer the most affordable and safest of them.

1. Honey and aloe. In the morning on an empty stomach, eat an aloe leaf with honey (at the rate of 1 aloe leaf - 1 tablespoon of honey). Eating is allowed after 1 hour. You can use ready-made aloe juice, which is mixed with honey (1 tablespoon of honey - 1 tablespoon of juice). Duration of treatment is 1 month.
2. Honey and butter. Mix equal parts of honey and butter. Take half an hour before meals, 1 tablespoon 3 times a day. Duration of treatment – ​​1 month.
3. Propolis with milk. You can buy a ready-made tincture at the pharmacy (or you can prepare it yourself). Add 50 drops of tincture to 1 glass of milk. Take 3 times a day 30 minutes before meals. Duration of therapy is 1 month.
4. Olive and sea buckthorn oil. Take a mixture of equal parts of oils. The recommended dose per dose is 1 tablespoon, drink 3 times a day 30 minutes before meals. Reception is continued for 1 month.

Note! Even safe folk recipes can cause side effects, so it is recommended to consult a doctor first.

Treatment of pregnant women

Expectant mothers are a special category of patients whose treatment is complicated by the fact that many drugs are contraindicated for them. If necessary, use the safest medications approved for use during pregnancy:

• sea ​​buckthorn oil;
• Omeprazole (trade names Omez , Ultop , Losek , Ortanol );
• antacids ( Phosphalugel , Gastal , Rennie , Gaviscon forte );
• No-shpu , Spasmonet are allowed to be used as antispasmodics .

Note! During pregnancy, especially in the first trimester, taking antibiotics is not recommended.

Evaluation of treatment effectiveness

Determined by a decrease or complete absence of pain syndromes and an improvement in the patient’s general condition.

During this period, it is very important to adhere to a special gentle diet, take supportive medications, and measures to prevent recurrence of the disease.

Using endoscopic examination, complete healing of erosions is monitored, bleeding stops, if any, and the absence of swelling and redness of the mucous walls is noted.

What happens if erosion is not treated?

Untreated erosion is fraught with the development of the following pathologies:

• Stomach ulcer. This disease affects the deeper tissues of the stomach, which is quite dangerous to health. The main danger of an ulcer is that it can break through the organ, with all the contents entering the abdominal cavity, where over time purulent peritonitis (inflammation of the peritoneum) develops. There is no drug treatment, only surgery.
• Polyp formation. Initially they are benign formations, but can degenerate into malignant ones. The threat is that they practically do not manifest themselves until they reach large sizes. They are usually found during endoscopic examination.
• Anemia. With internal bleeding, hemoglobin decreases, which affects general well-being. Concentration decreases, appetite and quality of sleep are disrupted, and heart failure may even develop. It is often difficult to immediately determine the cause of anemia, because not all people are ready to undergo gastroscopy for this, because do not believe that the stomach and hemoglobin can be connected.
• Stomach cancer. In the early stages there may be no symptoms at all, or the patient mistakes it for other diseases; some take the signs for an exacerbation of peptic ulcer disease.

Nutrition

One of the main stages of treatment is a special diet. Nutrition for gastric erosion must be of high quality and varied in order to provide the body with microelements, vitamins and energy components. The frequency of meals increases to 5-6 times a day. The temperature of the food should be comfortable to avoid irritation of the mucous membranes.

Diet for erosive gastritis with a sample menu for a week

What can you eat if you have stomach erosion and what can’t you eat?

The diet must meet the requirements presented in Table 3.

Table 3. Nutrition for gastric erosion

Preventive measures

To prevent the development of the disease you need:

• rejection of bad habits;
• avoidance of stressful situations;
• balanced menu;
• periodic health checks with a doctor;
• timely treatment of gastrointestinal diseases in the initial stages;
• careful and rational use of painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs;
• strengthening the body's immune forces during the cold season;
• Regular outdoor exercise, leisurely walks, swimming - all this increases stress resistance.