1) Gastritis
Etiology Gastritis refers to the inflammation of the stomach’s lining. The disease has three other subdivisions, namely; acute, erosive, and chronic gastritis. To start with, when the inflammation is severe, the condition is referred to as acute gastritis. When the disease has lasted for years before it is fully treated, it is referred to as chronic gastritis. Finally, when the inflammation causes bleeding of the stomach’s lining, it is referred to as erosive gastritis. People who have a weak stomach lining have higher chances of suffering from this disease. Additionally, the condition is also caused by Helicobacter pylori bacteria, which infect the stomach’s lining and weaken it. The main risk factors for contracting the disease include high alcohol consumption levels, tobacco use, and old age, to name just a few.
- Signs and symptoms
Some of the main signs and symptoms of this disease include vomiting, indigestion, and the stomach’s extreme fullness immediately after eating and nausea. However, other symptoms may include vomiting blood like substances and a tarry stool when the disease is at an erosive level.
- Differential Diagnosis and diagnostic studies
There are other common diseases that post similar symptoms, and they include; Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), Peptic ulcer disease (PED), and Non-ulcer dyspepsia. However, several tests can be used to rule them out from a list of possible conditions. A patient suffering from GERD may also post similar symptoms, but other extraesophageal infections characterize the disease. Therefore, the presence or absence of esophageal infections rules out the patient’s possibility to be suffering from GERD. Additionally, GERD patients’ H pylori breath test is always negative. Secondly, Peptic Ulcer disease has similar symptoms with gastritis. The disease is also associated with H pylori bacteria, and therefore this may not be used to rule out the disease. However, the stool test confirms the presence or absence of the two conditions. Finally, Non-ulcer dyspepsia is also associated with similar symptoms observed in gastritis patients. However, the H pylori test for this disease is usually negative, which is used to rule it out as a possible infection.
Therefore, the diagnosis of gastritis involves a stool test, breath, or blood test. Either test can be used to confirm the presence of H pylori bacterium, which is mainly responsible for this infection. The doctor may also perform an endoscopy to test the presence or absence of stomach inflammations, which are highly associated with the disease.
- Management of Gastritis
The treatment of this disease is dependent on its causes. For instance, if the inflammation is caused by excess consumption of alcoholic substances and tobacco, avoiding such drugs is an effective method of managing it. However, if H pylori bacteria cause it, antibiotics are used to manage this condition. Some of the antibiotics used include Proton pump inhibitors, which block the cells that produce the acids. Additionally, acid-reducing medications such as famotidine are also administered to the gastritis patient. Such medicines reduce the amount of acids in the digestive tract.
- Differences on Infants, children, pregnant women, and old adults.
Gastritis is not common to infants and young children. However, if an infant or a child is infected with the disease, the symptoms include vomiting, nausea, and appetite loss. Research indicates that 68% of the patients in this category suffer from acute gastritis, which is not very severe. The disease is, however, very common to pregnant women. The effects can also be severe, depending on the patient’s health history. A recent research conducted on pregnant women in Sweden postulated that about one-third of women suffer from this disease during pregnancy. Finally, the condition is also common among the older adults. This is because their stomach lining is weak, which increases the risk of contracting the disease.
2) Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)
- Etiology
GERD is a disease that affects the digestion ring from the stomach to the esophagus. This happens when indigested food substances move from the stomach to the esophagus. A study conducted by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) indicated that more than 20% of Americans suffer from this condition every year. GERD is caused by a malfunctioning of the muscles at the end of the esophagus. The muscles are responsible for either blocking or allowing movement of juices and other digestion substances in the stomach. Usually, the muscles expand to enable the movement of food into the stomach and later close to block the movement of food out of the stomach. In case the muscles are loose, they may allow movement of food substances from the stomach to the esophagus leading to this condition.
- Signs and symptoms of GERD
Some of the common signs and symptoms of GERD include a feeling of discomfort in the chest, often known as heartburn, sourness and bitter taste at the back of the mouth, regurgitation of food and digestion juices from the stomach to the mouth, difficulty in swallowing food or saliva, chronic cough to name just a few.
- Differential diagnosis and diagnostic studies
Both GERD and Gastroparesis have almost similar symptoms, which makes their diagnosis troublesome. Gastroparesis is a malfunctioning of the stomach muscles, thereby preventing the stomach from emptying its contents once digested. Gastroparesis’s primary symptoms include heartburn and quickly feeling full after taking some low food quantity. However, difficulty in swallowing food and saliva is not a symptom for the gastroparesis patients. Additionally, gastroparesis patients do not suffer from chronic coughs.
The doctors examine the symptoms exhibited by the patients and rule out the possibility of GERD infection. Other chemical tests are conducted in GERD diagnosis. They include a barium test whereby the patient is required to drink a barium solution, and an ex-ray analysis is conducted to examine the patient’s digestive tract. Moreover, esophageal manometry may also be performed to examine the strength of the esophagus muscles.
- Management of GERD
Several factors can help in minimizing the risk of acquiring this infection. Some of the non-pharmacologic interventions include avoiding the consumption of narcotic substances like tobacco, avoiding lying down immediately after eating, avoiding wearing tight clothes, exercising to lose excess weight, to name just a few.
Some of the pharmacologic interventions for this condition include the use of antacids that neutralize the acid in the esophagus and the stomach, thus stopping the heartburn. Additionally, the doctor may also prescribe Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) that work by blocking further production of acids that cause the problem.
- Differences on Infants, children, pregnant women, and old adults.
More than two-thirds of infants below the age of six months suffer from this condition globally. It is sometimes seen as normal for babies to spit food or vomit, but if it happens frequently, the baby may have contracted GERD. However, with the advancement of age, the condition stops or reduces its effects to the patient. Some of the signs and symptoms exhibited by infants and older children suffering from this condition include refusal to eat, loss of appetite, loss of weight, irritability immediately after eating, to name just a few. Pregnant women are at a high risk of acquiring this infection. This is because hormonal changes during pregnancy allow the esophagus muscles to contract and expand frequently. Therefore, the muscles may become loose and allow an influx of stomach substances in the mouth. Finally, older adults lead in the number of confirmed cases of this infection. They may not show very many symptoms, but the condition may become severe, therefore requiring immediate medical attention.
3) Salmonella Infection
- Etiology
Salmonella infection is one of the most common diseases globally. It is caused by a bacterium from contaminated food-related substances, therefore resulting in diarrhea, fever, stomach upset, to name just a few. The food-related causes of this infection include; consumption of raw and undercooked foodstuffs, consumption of raw fruits and vegetables, consumption of unpasteurized drinks like milk, or taking canned food substances like meat and nut butter. The condition can also emanate from poor hand washing before eating.
- Signs and symptoms
Most of salmonella infection symptoms are stomach related, and the patient exhibits them after 8-72 hours. They include diarrhea, stomach pains, bloody stool, fever, and headache. The symptoms may not last more than seven days, but the body may take months before returning to normalcy.
- Differential diagnosis and diagnostic studies
Most of the signs and symptoms of this infection are also experienced by cholera patients. However, for the cholera patients, they do not experience stomach inflammation as experienced by salmonella patients. Diarrhea is common in both diseases, and both of them are also caused by the consumption of raw or undercooked foodstuffs.
The diagnosis of salmonella involves testing the stool for the presence or absence of the bacteria. The bacteria can also be tested on the patient’s blood.
- The management of salmonella
Home-based care for patients exhibiting salmonella symptoms includes drinking a lot of water to counterbalance the amount of lost through diarrhea. This also prevents possible dehydration of the body. However, if the symptoms are severe, the doctor may prescribe anti-diarrheal medications or antibiotics if they suspect that the bacterium has already entered the patient’s bloodstream.
- Differences on Infants, children, pregnant women, and old adults.
According to the CDC, salmonella infections are prevalent in infants and children below five years. The group is the most hardly struck by this infection. Some of the main symptoms include fever and diarrhea. However, they recover from this condition in less than one week, but at least two babies die every day due to this infection. The older adults are also at high risk of acquiring this infection, and since their bodies are weak, they require immediate medical attention for possible prescription of antibiotics. Pregnant women have low-risk levels of contracting the disease.
4) Hemorrhoids
- Etiology
Hemorrhoids are swollen veins located around the anus or at the rectum. Therefore, they can either be internal or external, located in the rectum or around the anus. Some of the leading causes of this condition include constipation, which causes the swelling of the veins, eating low-fibred diets, anal sex, straining during bowel movements, diarrhea, to name just a few.
- Signs and symptoms
Some of the main symptoms of this condition include pain and itching of the anus, painful bowels, difficulty in sitting, bloody stool, and pain in the rectum. Fortunately, the condition is manageable both at the pharmacological level and by non-pharmacological interventions.
- Differential diagnosis and diagnostic studies
The disease has similar symptoms with rectal cancer. However, rectal cancer is a more severe infection that may not be treated using home-based interventions. Hemorrhoid patients do not experience fatigue, weight loss, and anemia; however, they are common to rectal cancer patients.
A visual examination from the doctor can diagnose hemorrhoids. The muscle strain and swelling can be used to confirm the presence or absence of the disease. However, the doctor may also carry a sigmoidoscopy to diagnose internal hemorrhoid patients.
- Management of hemorrhoids
Hemorrhoids can be managed using both the home-based interventions and the doctor’s prescriptions. Some of the home-based interventions include soaking the itchy anus area with a hot tub for a minimum of 10-20 minutes every day. Additionally, the patient can also practice high hygiene levels by properly cleaning the anal area every day to prevent bleeding of bacteria in the area. Over the counter, the doctor can prescribe fiber supplements such as psyllium and methylcellulose, which are responsible for softening the stool.
- Differences on Infants, children, pregnant women, and old adults.
Infants and young children have low-risk levels of contracting the disease. However, parents are encouraged to be vigilant to quickly identify any swelling of the anal area of young children alongside other symptoms. Hemorrhoids are most common in pregnant women and old adults’ between the ages of 50-65 years. During labor, the vagina expands, which causes pressure to the anal veins, making them swollen. On the other hand, older people are prone to constipation, which causes a strain in the anal tissues.