Helicobacter Forums

How would one know how long he/she has had the bacteria? Is it possible to get it and have symptoms right away or does it need to be in your system for a while before it wreaks havoc? Also, assuming I am truly negative for h pylori, would it still come back after I stop the Sucralfate? I'm in a bit of a bind. If I stop taking it I feel horrible, but I don't know if it's the h pylori really still there or just the bile that makes me nauseous. My doc says one sucralfate per day will not affect the endoscopy biopsy results. Not sure what to do so I've been putting it off.

There are many ways to test if you carry H. pylori. the common ones are: 1. blood test, 2. stool test, 3. breath test, 4. endoscopy - histology and/or bacteria culture

I personally will go for breath test because it's not invasive and very simple.

The only way to kill this bacteria is by antibiotics. So, if it is not killed, once you stop the sucralfate, it'll just come back.

by the way, sucralfate will affect the breath test result and you have to stop for 14 days before using breath or stool test.

since sucralfate can decrease the bacteria load, it may affect the histology screening after endoscopy. Nevertheless, an experience pathologist should be able to spot the inflammation and the pathogen.