Ulcers

Long-term use of a widely prescribed heartburn drug called Prilosec may be hazardous if patients are also infected with a common bacterium linked to both stomach ulcers and cancer. Although the drug relieves severe heartburn by suppressing the production of stomach acid, the lower acid levels allow the bacteria to cause more inflammation, a Dutch team reports in the April 18 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Beckman Instruments Inc. said Friday that its blood diagnostic test for the bacteria that causes most cases of peptic ulcers was approved by federal regulators. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Beckman's FlexSure Hp, a whole blood test to detect evidence of H.pylori, the bacteria responsible for up to 90% of peptic ulcers, the company said. The test uses a three-step, four-minute procedure that can be performed in a physician's office.

A vaccine can protect against the bacteria thought to cause stomach ulcers and some stomach cancers, Italian researchers have shown in a laboratory experiment with mice. The study, to be published today in the journal Science, showed that more than 70% of immunized mice were protected against a strain of \o7 Helicobacter pylori, \f7 the ulcer-causing bacteria. "The finding suggests that vaccines against \o7 H.

Taking an antidepressant may increase the odds of developing an ulcer, although the overall risk remains small, according to a report published Tuesday in the Archives of General Psychiatry. The study of 1,321 people with gastrointestinal bleeding found that such drugs as Eli Lilly's Prozac, Forest Laboratories' Celexa and Lexapro, GlaxoSmithKline's Paxil, Pfizer's Zoloft, and Wyeth's Effexor could trigger gastrointestinal bleeding in one of every 2,000 patients. The risk increased to 1 in 250 patients when aspirin or pain drugs also were taken, according to the report.

Re "You know what makes me sick?" Opinion, May 27 As a practicing gastroenterologist and a board member of the Celiac Disease Foundation, I find it unfortunate that Heather Abel accuses physicians of pushing pills after being bought off by drug companies. The failure to diagnose celiac disease is because of symptoms (if any) that are typically subtle and nonspecific, not because of a conspiracy between physicians and drug companies. Abel says her irritable bowel syndrome was treated with Celebrex, which caused ulcers.

Two Australian researchers who discovered that stomach ulcers are caused by a bacterium, not by emotional stress or spicy foods, were awarded the 2005 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine on Monday. Dr. J. Robin Warren, 68, and Dr. Barry J. Marshall, 54, overturned the belief held by physicians for decades by isolating a spiral-shaped bacterium called \o7Helicobacter pylori \f7from humans and ultimately demonstrating that it could produce serious lesions in the stomach.

Researchers have discovered how the bacterium Helicobacter pylori causes ulcers, and it is not what they expected. A team from Stanford University and the IRIS research institute in Siena, Italy, reported in Friday's issue of Science that the bacterium binds to the junctions between cells in the intestinal lining, injecting a protein that loosens the binding between cells. That causes leakiness of the lining, allowing stomach acids to irritate underlying tissue and produce ulcers.

Increasing your consumption of vitamin-C rich fruits and vegetables may protect you against ulcers and stomach cancer. In a random sample of 7,000 Americans, ages 20 to 90, researchers found that the prevalence of infection with Helicobacter pylori, the bacterium associated with ulcers, was 25% lower in those who had high levels of vitamin C in the blood than in those who had less than normal levels of the nutrient.

Over the last 20 years, research on a tiny, S-shaped stomach bacterium has overturned doctors' notions about the origins and history of diseases from ulcers to cancer of the stomach. Now, some scientists who study the bacterium, Helicobacter pylori, say the tiny bug may help trace the migration of human populations across the globe. Next week, enthusiasts from around the globe will gather in Australia to celebrate the discovery of H. pylori.

Bad news for those who can't stomach broccoli: New research suggests that it is especially good for the stomach. A compound found in broccoli and broccoli sprouts appears to be more effective than modern antibiotics against the bacteria that cause peptic ulcers. Moreover, tests in mice suggest the compound offers formidable protection against stomach cancer--the second most common form of cancer worldwide.