Gastritis: Main Questions Answered

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Gastritis is a type of inflammation in the stomach lining that causes a lot of pain and burning, and can progress to more severe symptoms such as vomiting, nausea, and loss of appetite.

Have your questions about gastritis answered and learn how to access other content on health and well-being.

What is gastritis?

Simply put, gastritis is an inflammation located in the inner lining (mucosa) of the stomach. This inflammation indicates that there is an injury or irritation in the organ.

The condition can occur in crises (acutely) or chronically, which requires continuous treatment to control pain and discomfort.

Below, have the main questions about the disease answered.

Main questions about gastritis

What is the cause of gastritis?

Gastritis can have more than one cause. They are:

• excessive alcohol consumption;
• smoking;
• continuous use of anti-inflammatory drugs or acetylsalicylic acid (ASA);
• infection by the bacterium Helicobacter pylori.

Symptoms and diagnosis

Regarding symptoms, gastritis tends to manifest through certain signs. They are:

• abdominal pains;
• indigestion;
• nausea;
• loss of appetite;
• burning and heartburn;
• vomiting.

The diagnosis can be made based on:

• endoscopy, where a specialist inserts an endoscope to identify the focus of inflammation and analyze the stomach. In addition, they also collect small tissue samples and send them to a laboratory to confirm the presence (or absence) of the bacterium Helicobacter pylori.

Risk factors

The main risk factors for the development of gastritis are:

• abuse of anti-inflammatory drugs;
• excessive alcohol consumption;
• significant consumption of fatty and acidic foods;
• Crohn’s disease;
• stress;
• excessive intake of caffeine-containing foods;
• genetic predisposition;
• smoking.

Prevention and diet

Diet is a fundamental factor in the prevention and treatment of gastritis. It is advisable to reduce the consumption of products that may increase stomach acidity, such as alcohol, coffee, and pepper.

In addition, fatty foods require more acid production by the stomach during digestion, so they are also on the list of items to be avoided, as well as pure milk, which encourages the production of gastric juice.

Possible treatments

The treatments for gastritis can vary according to each case. There are cases, for example, where gastritis improves after a short time, others are much more serious.

The main treatments are:

• antibiotics, if gastritis is caused by the bacterium Helicobacter pylori;
• dietary re-education, to avoid the production of acid and gastric juice;
• taking medications, such as antacids, to reduce stomach acidity.

Learn all about gastritis on EndoBlog

Gastritis varies greatly from case to case. A crisis can last only a few hours, others up to weeks for the symptoms to be controlled. It is essential to have the help and follow-up of a professional who guides the best treatment.

In addition, through EndoBlog, you can access all content about the stomach, gastritis, and endoscopy completely free of charge. Follow the blog to keep up with the main articles on the subject, like this one about: esophageal variceal ligation

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