Helicobacter pylori bacteria

[sinbin]

I've had wheezing and a cough now for over a year. And I've had many infection where the doctors didn't know the causes. Anyways I, as a last resort, went to Suranaree Military (government) hospital   in Korat and saw the Pulmonologist. He, along with other past specialists couldn't pinpoint why I was coughing and wheezing even after a CT scan, a Spirometer test and many chest x-rays. In the past I've been diagnosed as having had pneumonia, Bronchitis, Asthma etc over the year but none proved to be the correct diagnosis.

 

The Pulmonologist put me on meds which didn't seem to work, the same as all the other meds I've been prescribed over the year +. So it was arranged, by my Pulmonologist, that I go see a Gastroenterologist at Suranaree University  (government) hospital  just outside of Korat.

 

Why a Gastroenterologist when I suffer Pulmonary problems? Answers are, firstly, he can check with a Endoscope that I didn't have GERD, a possible cause of a persistent cough. Second, he can take a biopsy from my intestine? Intestine and lungs, not related?  But they are, or can be.

 

It was found that I have a high count of Helicobacter Pylori bacteria in my gut. There is a high risk that this condition can cause problems with your immune system along with numerous other ailments. And therefore that explains, hopefully, why I have had a cough for over a year for no logical reason. Helicobacter Pylori bacteria is also a major cause of stomach ulcers.

I hope my experience helps others? I've not yet finished my course of medication to eradicate the Helicobacter Pylori bacteria but things are looking good. Only downside to the eradication process is the side affects of the drugs. Google the subject I'm sure you'll be amazed at the problem this bacteria can cause. Good luck.

 

   

 

[sinbin]

Just to add to the above.

 

Quote

How H. pylori is Treated
H. pylori is usually treated with a combination of antibiotics and acid suppressants. This combination is called triple therapy, and has shown to be 90% effective in people who follow through with it for 15 days. The 3 most common medications used in this combination are two antibiotics, such as Clarithromycin and Amoxicillin, and a proton pump inhibitor, such as Prilosec or Prevacid. Once a person is treated with these medications, H. pylori will rarely return in most cases. Not all doctors are aware of H. pylori, specifically the ones who do not specialize in gastroenterology. So if you visit one doctor, and they try to tell you that it's caused by spicy foods or stress, try to see a different doctor. Every source on the internet, including the World Health Organization and the Center for Disease Control contradicts that old school type of sentiment.

 

[Sheryl]

Link to quack website removed.

 

Heliobacter is a common problem and can cause gastritis and ulcers, true. And chronic gastric inflammation due to is a risk factor for gastric cancer.

 

It can lead to irritation of the respiratory tract if there is reflux, and the reflux can be "silent", i.e. without obvious sensation of heartburn.

 

However there is not " a high risk that this condition can cause problems with your immune system along with numerous other ailments.". That is pure quackery.  The internet abounds with conditions - come real, some fictitious - claimed to account for an improbable range of illness or even all illnesses.

 

A very high percentage of people in some parts of the world (Thailand included) harbor h. pylori. In some developed countries it affects over 90% of the population....and there are correspondingly higher than usual rates of gastric cancer. There are not, however, unusual amounts of autoimmune disease nor any of the other things that some quack sites claim is attributable to h.pylori and no correllation has ever been found between these things and h. pylori.

 

By all means get checked for it if you have gastric inflammation, heartburn, and also chronic cough/respiratory irritation for which there is no apparent cause. It can play a role in these things. But not in immune disorders nor the whole host of other things that some non-scientific sources claim.

[sinbin]

To call people with a theory 'Quacks' is wrong. When Barry Marshall and Robin Warren first discovered the bacteria, and the problems it caused, they too were seen to be 'Quacks'. Time proved them to be correct. Give it a little more time before name calling.The bacteria is still being assessed. I'm sorry to disagree with you Sheryl.

 

Quote

At that time when Warren and Marshall announced their findings, it was a long-standing belief in medical teaching and practice that stress and lifestyle factors were the major causes of peptic ulcer disease. Warren and Marshall rebutted that dogma, and it was soon clear that H. pylori, causes more than 90% of duodenal ulcers and up to 80% of gastric ulcers. The clinical community, however, met their findings, with skepticism and a lot of criticism and that's why it took quite a remarkable length of time for their discovery to become widely accepted.