Medicines Used for Gastritis
Antibiotics
Amoxicillin – Amoxicillin is the most widely used antibiotic for the resolution of gastritis. This antibiotic is very potent against the kind of gastritis caused by H. Pylori infections. Usually the doctor requires the patient to take this medicine three times a day for about two weeks to fully eliminate the bacterial infection.
Clarithromycin – If amoxicillin for some reason or another proves ineffective for bacteria-caused gastritis, clarithromycin can be a good replacement to help eliminate bacterial infections of the stomach. This antibiotic is actually stronger than amoxicillin and can be used to kill H. Pylori bacteria and treat stomach ulcers caused by this infection.
Antacids
The function of stomach acids is to break down foods for proper digestion. The problem for people with gastritis is that their stomach acids cause irritation and inflammation in the stomach lining; when this happens the person feels intense stabbing pain in his abdomen. It then becomes quite urgent to take medicines that help neutralize stomach acids. The medicines best used to control stomach acidity are antacids. These are prescription meds that are specifically created to lessen stomach acidity. The following are the most commonly used prescribed antacids in the market today:
Pepto-Bismol
Gaviscon
Maalox
Mylanta
Acid Blockers
Acid blockers are designed to reduce the body’s production of stomach acid. They are prescribed often when antacids fail to reduce stomach acid production. In effect, acid blockers are the next line of treatment when antacids fail to address the gastritis symptoms. The more popular acid blockers available today are:
Cimetidine
Famotidine
Ranitidine
Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs)
Proton pump inhibitors have proven effective to help lessen the production of acid in the stomach. The stomach lining contain cells that act as miniature pumps that pump out stomach acids for effective digestion. PPIs inhibit these cells from pumping out stomach acids helping reduce stomach acids. The most popular proton pump inhibitors used include:
Esomeprazole
Omeprazole
Rabeprazole
Lansoprazole
Gastritis Treatment
Usually a combination of gastritis medications is utilized to effectively resolve the patient’s gastritis problem. Antibiotics combined with antacids often provide superior results compared to the use of only one medication. The antibiotic/antacid tandem is a potent combination and is deemed to be very effective to treat gastritis within a shorter time period than using only one type of gastritis drug.
You need to remember though that the aforementioned medications for gastritis are prescription drugs and can only be dispensed with the approval of your doctor. These medicines only work when the schedule of antibiotic therapy is followed faithfully. You should neither exceed the prescribed dose nor decrease it or else the result of the treatment would not be as desirable or as effective as it should be. Limiting or abstaining alcohol and other precautionary measures are likewise required in order to better manage your gastritis symptoms.
Acupuncture
Tests published by the National Institutes of Health have shown clear and solid evidence of the effectiveness of acupuncture in treating gastritis. Acupuncture and Chinese medicine unlike Western medicine concentrate its treatment on the person’s underlying cause of symptoms. Moreover, they concern themselves with the balance and harmony of the body’s systems. The restoration of the body’s healthy and natural state of balance is the aim of acupuncture.
All individuals possess in their body an energy force the Chinese call “Qi” or “Chi” (pronounced chee). Chi like blood travels throughout the body not through blood vessels but through a network of invisible energy pathways called meridians. Chi like electricity is made up of two opposing forces, Yin (negative force) and Yang (positive force). These forces need to be in constant balance in order for the body to maintain health.
Through the use of acupuncture, the practitioner evaluates a patient’s specific condition to come up with a course of action best suited for the patient. In the case of gastritis, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) can diagnose this condition as an energy imbalance specifically a deficiency in the stomach’s Yin. If this is the diagnosis, then selected acupuncture points are inserted with acupuncture needles to help stimulate the flow of Qi and restore balance the Yin and Yang of the stomach.
Acute gastritis is seen by TCM as the effect of a blockage of the Stomach Qi. Treatment focuses in facilitating the movement of Qi and harmonizing the digestive functions to treat pain. If the diagnosis includes consolidation of toxin (due to food poisoning, for example) the treatment plan would then also involve detoxification. If emotional distress is involved treatment for depression is also applied and this entails treating specific trigger points along the affected meridian.
When seen in a Western medicine point of view, acupuncture is a safe, holistic and healthy therapy that can be utilized in combination with Western medical therapy to help relieve/treat the painful symptoms of gastritis.