H-Pylori Bacteria: Symptoms and Causes

The H-Pylori bacteria were first discovered back in 1983 and there are only around 20,000 to 50,00 people in the United States who have been diagnosed with it. In other countries, 50% of the people have the H-Pylori bacteria but most of the time it remains dormant so there are many people that are carrying the H-Pylori bacteria do not even know it. The most common cause of the H-Pylori bacteria is through food and water.

I had never even heard of the H-Pylori bacteria and neither had my husband but we both knew something was causing his upper stomach and muscles just above the chest bone to just be bothersome and very annoying to him almost on a daily basis. This went on for about five weeks and my husband finally said he wanted to go to the doctor to see what was going on with him. I went with my husband to the doctor and I have explained how this all started and then how my husband was diagnosed and treated for the H-Pylori Bacteria. The doctor told my husband to stay away from milk, caffeine, chocolate and alcohol for now.

We arrived at the doctor's office on January 12, 2010 and she listened to my husband's explanation of his symptoms and what all he was feeling. She examined him and first suspected peptic ulcers just from listening to my husband explaining his symptoms. She wanted to run a CBC at the clinic to check for any sign of an infection and the doctor also ran an EKG just to make sure that my husband's heart was functioning properly and that there were no signs of a heart attack. His EKG was good and the CBC did show that there was an infection somewhere so she wanted to run another blood test which checks for the H-Pylori bacteria because of his symptoms she said she suspects that he could have the H-Pylori bacteria and this bacteria is what causes peptic ulcers in the lining of the upper stomach.

Since the test results for the H- Pylori bacteria took one day to receive the result, on the same day of the exam, the Doctor wanted to start my husband on Amoxicillin just because there was infection somewhere and she also gave him a prescription for a top of the line ulcer medication and she said if the test results did show signs of the H-Pylori bacteria, then she would prescribe a medicine that actually kills the bacteria.

The next day, the doctor called with the results of the test and she said that there were signs of the H- Pylori bacteria being present so she called in a thirty day prescription of Aciphex. This is the medication that actually kills the H- Pylori bacteria. The doctor told my husband to continue with the amoxicillin and start taking the Aciphex as well. She gave him a thirty-day supply of both medications and said that he might need to re-fill the Aciphex after 30 days if he still feels a little raw in his stomach muscles and lining.

The daily medicating began and after two weeks of taking both medications, my husband said that he could already tell a difference in the way the lining of his upper stomach felt. He said the burning sensation was subsiding and his appetite began to come back. After both the Amoxicillin and Aciphex were gone, the symptoms of the H-Pylori bacteria were gone. It has been almost eight months ago now since my husband was treated for the H-Pylori bacteria and he is much better now. Every once in a while he will feel a little burning sensation in his upper stomach lining, but this is because he still has to have his Blue Bell vanilla ice cream and milk even though he knows dairy and chocolate irritates his stomach.

Sources:Personal Experience

DISCLAIMER:

The above is intended for educational purposes only and should not take the place of anyone seeking professional medical advice for your individual health concerns. The above treatments were diagnosed for my husband and may not be the correct treatment for other individuals with the same symptoms. Talk to your personal medical professional for your own health concerns.