The word peptic relates to something that aids digestion, while ulcer means a kind of sore in the stomach usually related to inflammation, so therefore peptic ulcer has posed a major threat to the world's population over past two centuries with increase in mortality and also morbidity rate. The evolution of the knowledge of acid-driven disease has thrown much emphasis on the concept of peptic ulcer and this has brought about the discovery of histamine-2 receptor antagonist which lead to the suppression of the histamine-2 receptor.
More so, the helicobacter pylori was also discovered owing to mucosal damage intervention, basically peptic ulcer includes both gastric and duodenal ulcer but why does peptic ulcer occur? This is as a result of imbalance between the aggressive and defensive factors, these aggressive factors includes the acid, pepsin, bile, Helicobacter pylori while the defensive factors includes mucus, HCO3 and prostaglandin.
Before I go into the drugs for arresting peptic ulcer I would want us to known about the symptoms;
these usual symptoms are burning gastric tract, pains around the abdomen,mild-nausea, bloating or belching,fatty food intolerance and heartburn.
REMEDY TO PEPTIC ULCERATION
Therefore to remedy this situation drugs are used and these drugs are classified according to various functions;
- Drugs that inhibit gastric acid secretion
- Drugs that neutral gastric acid
- Ulcer protectives
- Anti-Helicobacter
DRUGS THAT INHIBIT GASTRIC ACID SECRETION
This class is further divided into smaller classes and they are;
- Histamine 2 receptor blocker: these drugs are used routinely to obstruct the histamine-2 receptor that induces gastric acid secretion and they are Cimetidine, Ranitidine,famotidine etc
- Proton Pump Inhibitors(PPIs): This is among the drugs subclasses. It inhibites the proton pump channels however not all proton pumps are inhibited at once in one dose that's why 3-4 days of daily medication are required. This drugs are clinically available world wipe and they are; Omeprazole, lansoprazole, esomeprazole and others.
- Anti-cholinergics: They are the inhibitors of cholinergic neurotransmitter that is also responsible for gastric acid production too. And a good example is pirenzepine.
DRUGS THAT NEUTRALISE GASTRIC ACID
The role of this drug is helpful in peptic ulcer treatment and they are otherwise known as antacids meaning that they work towards attacking gastric acids and bringing it to neutrality. These antacids are weak bases that react with gastric acid to form salt and water as its products. This drugs can be systemic or non systemic. So therefore what is systemic drugs? These drugs are substances that when taken affects the systemic circulations while non systemic drugs are drugs that act within the intestinal lumen.These systemic drugs are the sodium bicarbonate, sodium citrate while the non systemic drugs are the magnesium hydroxide, aluminum hydroxide etc
ULCER PROTECTIVES
This has an imperative role in mucosa protection thus adhering on the mucosal surface and reducing gastric penetration. It leads to mucosal damage but when this mucosal linings get demaged, gastric acid leaks into the lumen and on getting to the lumen of the stomach, this acid causes irritation that leads to inflammation and thus attracting inflammatory cells to arrest the process, however this leads to severe gastric irritation if the influx of stomach-acid is not arrested so therefore, a good example is covering a metal with rubber material thus preventing rust that may lead to the weakness of the metal and that is how ulcer protectives works. These drugs are Sucralfate,Colloidal Bismuth Sulfate etc
ANTI-HELICOBACTER
Before I talk about the drugs for remedy it will be imperative to make the essence of this bacteria known; its a gram-negative rod bacteria associated with gastritis and duodenal ulcer. This organism under pathological condition damages the mucosal lining of the gastric tract thus enabling gastric acid to reach through the lumen of the gastric tract to cause inflammatory effects. Drugs used are antibiotics and they are metronidazole,amoxicillin,tetracycline etc
GENERAL SIDE EFFECTS
Have we asked ourselves why the doctor tells us to take panadol when taking some drugs? Now guys the answer is here; a drug has the good and the bad side, that's why an anti-malaria drug for instance works in more than two phases; stopping malaria and inducing headache, vomiting and other little effects so therefore When these anti-peptic ulcer drugs are taken, they cause different side effects of which nausea, headache, mild-dizziness, diarrhea are one of them. Antibiotics used for the remedy as regards helicobacter pylori invasion such as tetracycline causes yellowing of the skining, spots on the head,vomiting, weakness, visual changes,abdominal pain. Most of this side effects are written on the labels of tablets covers.
Thanks for reading...expect my new research!
Reference
Peptic ulcer sourced from Ncbi
Symptoms of peptic ulcer by mayoclinic
Effects of tetracyline
Drugs development against peptic ulcer sourced from omicsonline
Bertram G.K, Anthony J.T, Basic &Clinical Pharmacology,13th Edition, pg 1052-1061