Helicobacter Forums

Hey guys,

I have strange symptoms that I'm going to request a stool and blood sample for in a couple of days (its Saturday here in Australia; weekend means no GPs available); but I thought I'd post here and get some advice to calm some anxiety (which may or may not be needed).

For roughly 4 weeks now I have had the following symptoms: gas, burping, upset gurgling stomach, on-and-off minor temperature (cleared up now), burning inside stomach, sharp pain here and there (moves about around the lower abdomen and gut region), nausea (which has gone), and constipation (which has also gone). When I first had the symptoms, I thought I strained my bladder for holding onto pee before bed, as I woke up with stinging in the lower abdomen. Then over a few days it cleared up. When I drank coffee the stinging returned, but nothing serious. Then gradually all the other symptoms followed.

My doctor (who I have seen 3 times about it now, haha), checked me for gallstones, appendicitis, and thinks I'm clean. I had a urine test and a ultrasound and they found nothing. For awhile after that, I suspected it was just a prolonged stomach flu --- my brother had the same symptoms 2 years ago, and he suffered for a month before it all cleared up.

Now I've read that gastro only lasts no longer than 10 days. And I have also read that people have had it for 3-4 weeks. Mostly, advice says that maybe they got over one bug, then caught another; or that the body is still reeling from the effects.

However, it was through my research of prolonged gastro that I stumbled across a post between a man and a doctor (on one of those websites where you pay someone to answer your questions, and the answers are made public) discussing his symptoms. They mentioned H Pylori. This peaked my interest, and I obsessively researched it. Now I'm wondering if that is what I have.

My mum has the same symptoms; though a little less than me (mostly the bloating and gas). She caught it a few days after I felt ill.

I noticed the pain/upset feeling in the belly gets worse if I drink caffeine or eat certain foods. I tried cereal with rice milk twice over the days I've had this, and both times I reacted badly. Might just be coincidence.

Am I paranoid?

The doctor I will be making an appointment with in two days is with another clinic; as I wasn't happy with the previous doctor who gave me something called Pantoprazole Actavis and paracetamol after the urine and ultrasound brought up nothing. I know this is information overload, but my family doctor who I have had for years recently moved to a upperclass suburb and now doesn't allow bulk-billing (an Australian term for government covered appointments, i.e. free consultation). So yes, I'm trying to find the answer through new doctors. Oh, and I'm getting my mum to get a check as well.

Anyway, I hope my ranting makes sense and you can give me some advice. Maybe there are other symptoms that share this disease. But if it is H Pylori, I will fight it tooth and nail.

P.S. currently drinking prune juice, and feel the unpleasant aftereffects

normal gastro diseases are usually self limiting. perhaps you want to consider stool test or endoscopy.

also, have you thought of potential food allergies?

Helico_expert, thank you for your reply. I'm going to request a stool test... and do I ask for an endoscopy at the same time or after?

I haven't considered food allergies. I don't have any that I am aware of (other than lactose intolerance; which is why I drink rice milk). I'm a 35 year old male too, if that helps. Never had any allergies in the past.

Sorry, one other question. I just realised that the medication Pantoprazole Actavis is a PPI. I took one last night and won't take anymore. I've only taken them on and off over the last week. Should there be a wait time before I do a stool for HP; or will it be out of my system sometime this week?

Helico_expert wrote:normal gastro diseases are usually self limiting. perhaps you want to consider stool test or endoscopy.

also, have you thought of potential food allergies?

Also, in regards to checks. Should I ask for a breath, stool or endoscopy? My appointment is tomorrow, and I'm a little nervous. I'm keen to know what is going on in my stomach, but I don't want to act like a know-it-all self-diagnosed individual when asking for these tests. Oh and is it okay to be on Endep (I take it for vestibular migraine) and antibiotics for HP?

I am so sorry for the late reply. I have been travelling in China and internet has been "limited".

anyway, how's your stool test go? I think stool antigen is not too sensitive to PPI. So, it should be alright for your stool test. Nevertheless, I would suggest anyone else to avoid PPI as much as possible to avoid any unwanted false negative.

If you have not done an endoscopy for the past 2 to 3 years, maybe you can ask for one, just to have a general understanding of your stomach condition.

Helico_expert wrote:I am so sorry for the late reply. I have been travelling in China and internet has been "limited".

anyway, how's your stool test go? I think stool antigen is not too sensitive to PPI. So, it should be alright for your stool test. Nevertheless, I would suggest anyone else to avoid PPI as much as possible to avoid any unwanted false negative.

If you have not done an endoscopy for the past 2 to 3 years, maybe you can ask for one, just to have a general understanding of your stomach condition.

No problem at all! Thank you for your reply. Hope you enjoyed your trip to China.

I had my stool test last Thursday, and they said it might take a week to process. And my breath test is not this week coming, but Wednesday the one after that. So I'm hoping to have a catchup with my GP before then to see how the stool test went. I will also enquire into the endoscopy too.

The pain got worse when I ate sugary stuff. Or a lot of food. Then its changed to a warm, burning feeling. I don't have hunger pangs anymore, which is annoying. But I heard that is possibly a symptom?

I was wondering, say this is HP, does the longer you leave this bug the more damage it does? I'm just a little worried that I have to wait so long before I get a diagnosis, and then antibiotics. Will this time make it harder to kill the infection if I have it?

And another hypothetical for you. If you were to catch H Pylori, how long (estimates) would it take to develop into stomach cancer if you your family is prone to it? I don't have it in my family, but just curious.

Glad that you are doing a breath test as a backup. We shall wait for the result.

in regards to H. pylori and cancer development, in general, it takes a very long time for cancer development. H. pylori is a very chronic infection. Prof. Marshall's patients have to wait 9 months to see him personally.

of course, if you carry cancer gene, then the chance is much higher with the presence of H. pylori. Secondly, if you frequently have high salt food, it may also increase the chance.

Nevertheless, I think your chance of getting a negative breath test is high. Try gather positive thoughts and distract yourself from thinking about your stomach problem. After the breath test, you may take some PPI or H2 blockers to ease your problem.

Helico_expert, thank you for your words. You made today so much better. My anxiety has decreased a lot.

Just say I do have HP after the results come back; what are some sanitary precautions I should take after I go on antibiotics? Just so I don't reinfect. My mum and brother will get tested if I am flagged. I suppose we replace our toothbrushes and sterilise our eating utensils? Or is that not necessary? Cheers.

i think basic hygiene is important to prevent reinfection. that includes constant hand washing, especially after toilet; flush toilet with the cover lid close; avoid sharing food and drinks with people who might be carrying H. pylori (especially those with symptoms).

H. pylori doesnt survive very well outside human body. So I dont think it'll be easy to get reinfection as long as everyone under the same roof is free of H. pylori.

There is no need to "sterilize" utensils, but a normal cleaning with soap is good enough to kill 99.99% germs. There is no need to replace toothbrush, but try avoid sharing toothbrush. There may be other germs that may be transmitted via contaminated toothbrush.