1. Take the Tummy Trouble Quiz
2. Digestive Disease Myths Slideshow Pictures
3. Ulcerative Colitis Slideshow

Medical Author:

Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD

Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD

Dr. Charles "Pat" Davis, MD, PhD, is a board certified Emergency Medicine doctor who currently practices as a consultant and staff member for hospitals. He has a PhD in Microbiology (UT at Austin), and the MD (Univ. Texas Medical Branch, Galveston). He is a Clinical Professor (retired) in the Division of Emergency Medicine, UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, and has been the Chief of Emergency Medicine at UT Medical Branch and at UTHSCSA with over 250 publications.

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Medical Editor:

Jay W. Marks, MD

Jay W. Marks, MD

Jay W. Marks, MD, is a board-certified internist and gastroenterologist. He graduated from Yale University School of Medicine and trained in internal medicine and gastroenterology at UCLA/Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

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In this Article

• What is Helicobacter pylori?
• What does H. pylori cause in humans?
• What are the symptoms of H. pylori infections?
• Is H. pylori contagious?
• How is H. pylori infection diagnosed?
• Why treat H. pylori?
• What is the treatment for H. pylori?
• Who should receive treatment for H. pylori?
• Can H. pylori infections be prevented?
• What is the prognosis for H. pylori infections?
• Patient Comments: Helicobacter Pylori - Treatments
• Patient Comments: Helicobacter Pylori - Diagnosis
• Find a local Gastroenterologist in your town
• Helicobacter Pylori Index

Chronic infection with H. pylori weakens the natural defenses of the lining of the stomach to the ulcerating action of acid. Medications that neutralize stomach acid (antacids), and medications that decrease the secretion of acid in the stomach (H2-blockers and proton pump inhibitors or PPIs) have been used effectively for many years to treat ulcers.

H2-blockers include

• ranitidine (Zantac),
• famotidine (Pepcid),
• cimetidine (Tagamet), and
• nizatidine (Axid).

PPIs include

• omeprazole (Prilosec),
• lansoprazole (Prevacid),
• rabeprazole (Aciphex),
• pantoprazole (Protonix), and
• esomeprazole (Nexium).

Antacids, H2-blockers and PPIs, however, do not eradicate H. pylori from the stomach, and ulcers frequently return promptly after these medications are discontinued. Hence, antacids, H2-blockers or PPIs have to be taken daily for many years to prevent the return of the ulcers and the complications of ulcers such as bleeding, perforation, and obstruction of the stomach. Even such long-term treatments can fail. Eradication of H. pylori, however, usually prevents the return of ulcers and ulcer complications even after appropriate medications such as PPIs are stopped. Eradication of H. pylori also is important in the treatment of the rare condition known as MALT lymphoma of the stomach. Treatment of H. pylori to prevent stomach cancer is controversial and discussed later in this article.