Gastric Disorders : Causes and Risk Factors

Researchers have only recently begun to understand the many, often complex diseases that affect the digestive system. Accordingly, people are gradually replacing folklore, old wives' tales, and rumors about the causes and treatments of digestive diseases with accurate, up-to-date information.
  • Ulcers: Almost all stomach ulcers are caused either by infection with a bacterium called Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) or by use of pain medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen, or naproxen, the so-called nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). Most H. pylori-related ulcers can be cured with antibiotics. NSAID-induced ulcers can be cured with time, stomach-protective medications, antacids, and avoidance of NSAIDs. Spicy food and stress may aggravate ulcer symptoms in some people, but they do not cause ulcers. Ulcers can also be caused by cancer.
  • Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Irritable bowel syndrome is a disease, although it is also called a functional disorder. Irritable bowel syndrome involves a problem in how the muscles in the intestines work and pain perception in the bowel. It is characterised by gas, abdominal pain, and diarrhoea or constipation, or both. Although the syndrome can cause considerable pain and discomfort, it does not damage the digestive tract as organic diseases do. Also, irritable bowel syndrome does not lead to more serious digestive diseases later, such as cancer.
  • Diverticulosis: The majority of Americans over age 60 have diverticulosis, but only a small percentage have symptoms or complications. Diverticulosis is a condition in which little sacs or out-pouchings called diverticula develop in the wall of the colon. These sacs tend to appear and increase in number with age. Most people have no symptoms and learn that they have diverticula after an x ray or intestinal examination. Less than 10 percent of people with diverticulosis ever develop complications such as infection (diverticulitis), bleeding, or perforation of the colon.
  • Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Inflammatory bowel disease is the general name for two diseases that cause inflammation in the intestines, Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis. The cause of the disease is unknown, but researchers speculate that it may be a virus or bacteria interacting with the body's immune system.
  • GERD: The most common symptom of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is heartburn, which occurs when the acidic contents of the stomach reflux (flow backwards) into the esophagus. But about 10–15% of people with GERD do not have heartburn. Instead, they experience asthma, a chronic cough, chest pain, or laryngitis. These symptoms result when stomach acid refluxes into organs connected to the esophagus, such as the larynx, trachea, and lungs. The chance of developing these nonheartburn symptoms of GERD increases with age. Nonheartburn symptoms make GERD more difficult to diagnose, because acid reflux is not the most common cause of them.
  • Gastritis : Gastritis that occurs suddenly (acute gastritis) usually results in the classic combination of nausea and burning pain or discomfort in your upper abdomen, whereas chronic gastritis, which develops gradually, is more likely to cause a dull pain and a feeling of fullness or loss of appetite after a few bites of food. For many people, though, chronic gastritis causes no problems at all. Occasionally, gastritis may cause stomach bleeding, but it's rarely severe unless there's also ulceration of your stomach lining. Bleeding in your stomach can cause you to vomit blood or pass black, tarry stools and may require immediate medical care.
  • Gastroenteritis: Gastroenteritis means inflammation of the stomach and small and large intestines. Viral gastroenteritis is an infection caused by a variety of viruses that results in vomiting or diarrhea or both. It is often called the "stomach flu," although it is not caused by the influenza viruses.
    Many different viruses can cause gastroenteritis, including rotaviruses, noroviruses, adenoviruses, type 40 or 41, sapoviruses, and astroviruses. Viral gastroenteritis is not caused by bacteria (such as Salmonella or Escherichia coli) or parasites (such as Giardia), or by medications or other medical conditions, although the symptoms may be similar. Your doctor can determine if the diarrhea is caused by a virus or by something else. The main symptoms of viral gastroenteritis are watery diarrhea and vomiting although one or the other symptom may predominate. The affected person may also have headache, fever, and abdominal cramps ("stomach ache"). In general, the symptoms begin 1 to 2 days following infection with a virus that causes gastroenteritis and may last for 1 to 10 days, depending on which virus causes the illness; however, most episodes last from 1-3 days.

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