Hello, are you there, Helicobacter pylori

Helicobacter pylori, I know these words, but why have I never heard of them together?

Quickly search it. It turns out that it is a spiral-shaped, slightly anaerobic bacterium that has very strict requirements for growth conditions. It lives in various areas of the stomach and duodenum, and is prone to cause mild chronic inflammation of the gastric mucosa, and even lead to gastric and duodenal ulcers and gastric cancer. It is also listed as a Class 1 carcinogen by the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer.

The main symptom of Helicobacter pylori infection is acid reflux.

This bacteria usually appears in the stomach and is not easily found in the mouth unless there is esophageal reflux.

It was first isolated from gastric mucosal tissue in 1983 and is currently the only known type of microorganism that can survive in the human stomach.

As the saying goes: Trouble comes from the mouth. Eating raw food and drinking raw water can easily cause Helicobacter pylori infection. If you use tableware infected with Helicobacter pylori, it will also cause Helicobacter pylori infection.

Therefore, we should pay more attention to oral hygiene, eat cooked meat and drink boiled water, so that germs will stay away from us.

Humans are the only source of infection with Helicobacter pylori, and there are three main routes of infection.

Oral route, such as mouth-to-mouth feeding, chewing before feeding, kissing the baby's lips, mixing tableware, etc.

Gastric pathway, where food in the stomach refluxes into the mouth.

Fecal-oral route, contact with feces of Helicobacter pylori patients without washing hands.

Some patients with special conditions need to eradicate Helicobacter pylori in a timely manner.

The cure can be a combination of PPI or colloidal bismuth antibiotics. If the treatment is not effective, PPI and colloidal bismuth can be used in combination, or antibiotics can be changed.

In addition to the treatment of Helicobacter pylori, there are currently four main treatment options: first-line therapy, second-line therapy, third-line therapy, and sequential therapy. However, they also have problems such as drug resistance, toxic side effects, intestinal flora disorders, and high recurrence rates.

On the other hand, not every infected person will have symptoms. Many people may not realize it at all. Later, when they develop chronic gastritis and experience symptoms such as upper abdominal discomfort, dull pain, acid reflux, nausea, and vomiting, they will be surprised when they get the test results from the hospital.

Early detection leads to early treatment, and you can avoid being troubled by so many symptoms.

For testing, you can try invasive testing methods such as serological testing and non-invasive testing methods such as endoscopy and rapid urease test.

Almost all people infected with Helicobacter pylori have gastritis, and 1% of them will develop gastric cancer.
About 15% to 20% of patients will suffer from diseases such as gastric ulcer, duodenal bulb ulcer, indigestion, and gastric mucosal hypertrophy.