Causes of Ulcers

Duodenal ulcers and peptic ulcers are demarcated inflammatory processes of the mucosa of the stomach or duodenum. They are always accompanied by a loss of substance of the tissue, which decays ulcerously. Gastric ulcer is called ventricular ulcer, duodenal ulcer duodenal ulcer – both are often simply referred to as ulcer. If ulcers occur repeatedly over a period of years, it is chronic recurrent ulcer disease. Ventriculi ulcer is less common than duodenal ulcer.

Incidence of ulcers

Gastric ulcers are equally common in women and men, and duodenal ulcers are 3.5 times more common in men. The maximum age-specific incidence of disease is in the 60s to 65s for ventriculi ulcer and not until the 75s to 80s for duodenal ulcer. If direct relatives (children, parents, grandparents) have ulcer disease or if blood type zero is found, the risk of disease increases approximately 1.5-fold for both forms of ulcer disease.

What is peptic ulcer disease?

Gastric ulcer is a circumscribed mucosal defect that reaches the deeper layers of the stomach wall and is also called an ulcer whose diameter can range from a few millimeters to more than three centimeters. From an inflammation of the gastric mucosa that lasts for weeks, months or even years, called chronic gastritis, ulcers can develop in the next step.

Development of ulcers

According to the earlier view, the disease was primarily based on an imbalance between aggressive (attacking the mucosa) and defensive (protecting the mucosa) factors. This understanding of the disease must be supplemented by a significant factor: For some years now, it has been known that the bacterium Helicobacter pylori is significantly involved in the development of ulcers. Approximately 60 percent of the world’s population carry the Helicobacter pylori pathogen in their stomach lining. It is a bacterium that produces enzymes involved in cell damage of the gastric mucosa. The ulcer can occur alone or multiple times. Another major triggering factor is psychosocial stress, which promotes aggressive mechanisms via an overexcitable autonomic nervous system, such as an increase in gastric juice production, in addition to still unexplained biochemical influences.

Triggers and causes

However, these aggressive mechanisms can probably only take effect in the presence of a corresponding inherited predisposition. Apparently, personality also plays a role in ulcer development. That is, psychosocial stress and predisposition alone are not uniquely ulcer-triggering; the decisive factor is the personality-related manner of stress processing: ulcer patients suffer from feelings of guilt, frustration, and constant conflict tension. In any case, the mechanisms of ulcer development seem to be multifactorial, i.e. determined by many different factors. In the case of gastric ulcer, besides biochemical factors and disturbed feedback mechanisms of hydrochloric acid secretion, abuse of painkillers and alcohol seems to play an additional role. In duodenal ulcer, circulatory disturbances due to abnormal vascular nerve activity are also suspected. Purely statistically, blood group zero is clustered in ulcer carriers; it is possible that the absence of blood group-active substances is a promoting factor.

Ulcer diseases are on the rise

What is certain is that ulcer disease of the stomach and duodenum is increasing in frequency in all industrialized countries. Modern lifestyle as well as physical and mental stress certainly play a role in the development. In addition, constitutional peculiarities are of importance. Sensitive, nervous people of slim build are particularly prone to the disease. It is also suspected that the ulcers could be a pathological self-digestion of the stomach or duodenal wall by the digestive enzymes present in the digestive juices.

Risk factors for peptic ulcers

The following factors increase the risk of disease for peptic ulcer:

Excessive alcohol, nicotine and caffeine consumption further increase the risk of disease.