Is pyloric ulcer serious?

If you have already developed pyloric ulcer, it is not so serious. As long as you receive detailed treatment in the early stages, your condition will not worsen. However, some patients will have symptoms of upper abdominal pain, so you must control the development of your disease and avoid worsening. Basically, you must take appropriate treatment in time when your condition worsens.

Upper abdominal pain is the main symptom of this disease. It is mostly located in the upper abdomen, but may also appear in the left upper abdomen or behind the sternum or xiphoid process. It often presents as dull pain, bloating, or burning pain. The pain of gastric ulcer usually occurs within 1 hour after a meal, gradually eases after 1 to 2 hours, and the above rhythm returns after the next meal. Some patients may be asymptomatic, or may have complications such as bleeding and perforation as the first symptoms.

1. Upper gastrointestinal bleeding

Upper gastrointestinal bleeding is the most common complication of peptic ulcer. 20% to 30% of ulcer patients have a history of bleeding, and bleeding from duodenal ulcer is more common than from gastric ulcer. According to statistics, among the various causes of upper gastrointestinal bleeding, ulcers account for about 50%, ranking first. Most peptic ulcer bleeding can stop on its own. Gastric ulcers bleed more often than duodenal ulcers. Bleeding is likely to occur within 1 to 2 years after the onset of peptic ulcer.

2. Ulcer perforation

Peptic ulcer perforation can be clinically divided into three types: acute, subacute and chronic. The incidence of duodenal ulcer is higher than that of gastric ulcer. It is more common in people aged 30 to 50 years old. Duodenal ulcer perforation is more common in young and middle-aged people under 40 years old, while gastric ulcer perforation is more common in middle-aged and elderly people over 50 years old.

3. Pyloric obstruction

About 10% of patients with peptic ulcer may have pyloric obstruction, mostly occurring in duodenal ulcers, followed by pyloric canal or prepyloric ulcers. Peptic ulcer complicated with pyloric obstruction is more common in the elderly, mainly in men. In recent years, due to the widespread use of various effective anti-ulcer drugs, this complication has been significantly reduced. There are two types of pyloric obstruction: organic and functional.

The former is caused by chronic ulcers leading to submucosal fibrosis, resulting in scar stenosis, which is ineffective for medical treatment and often requires surgical treatment; the latter is caused by inflammation of the tissues around the ulcer, which causes congestion, edema and pyloric reflex spasm, and is effectively treated with medical treatment.

4. Cancer

Whether chronic gastric ulcers will turn into cancer is still controversial. Most scholars believe that gastric ulcer canceration does exist, and the canceration rate is estimated to be 1% to 7%. Gastric ulcer canceration often occurs at the edge of the ulcer, while duodenal ulcer generally does not become cancerous.