The most common symptom is epigastric pain Peptic ulcers are ulcers that occur when the mucous membrane of the gastrointestinal tract is digested by gastric acid and pepsin, and are most likely to occur in the stomach and duodenum. Most of the painful sites of peptic ulcers are located in the upper abdomen, but they are slightly different in gastric and duodenal ulcers. The typical site of pain in gastric ulcers is under the glabella or to the left of the upper abdomen, while the typical site of pain in duodenal ulcers is to the right of the glabella and is more limited. The characteristics of long-term chronic pain. Most of the epigastric pain in peptic ulcer patients is long-term, weeks, months, or even years long. This is due to the self-healing nature of ulcers, where symptoms are associated with recurrent activity of ulcer disease – self-healing. In some patients, the symptoms heal without special treatment, but the attacks start again at intervals. Recurrence and periodicity. Most patients with ulcer disease have pain that is not continuous throughout the year and has a pattern of remission – relapse – remission again – relapse again. Rhythmic pain. The onset and relief of pain in ulcer patients is closely related to eating. Most of the pain in patients with gastric ulcer occurs about half an hour after eating, and the abdominal pain is relieved after gastric emptying for 1 to 3 hours, showing the characteristics of eating – pain – relief of symptoms after gastric emptying. Most of the pain in duodenal ulcer patients occurs in fasting, that is, about 3 to 4 hours after eating, and sometimes it is manifested as night pain, which can be relieved rapidly after eating or taking alkaline drugs, showing the characteristics of fasting – pain – symptom relief after eating. Therefore, we often see patients with duodenal ulcers having “extra meals and night snacks”. In addition to the typical pain symptoms, peptic ulcer disease can also appear some atypical symptoms common to digestive tract diseases, such as acid reflux, heartburn, abdominal distension, etc. Patients with gastric ulcers can appear “afraid to eat” phenomenon due to abdominal pain after eating, manifested as loss of appetite, wasting, etc. In addition to these symptoms, if the combination of the above-mentioned typical pain, then we should consider whether it is a peptic ulcer. The most common complications: 1. Ulcer bleeding Ulcer bleeding usually occurs when there is a stressful event: for example, when the temperature drops, work stress, emotional stress, etc. In addition, ulcer bleeding due to drug side effects is also very common. Usually, most people with bleeding ulcers only have upper abdominal pain and no other obvious symptoms, and the bleeding usually stops on its own and is not life-threatening. However, in some patients, ulcer erosion into the small submucosal arteries can cause dangerous bleeding. If you have a past history of gastric disease, epigastric pain with black stool or even vomiting blood at the change of season is a sign of bleeding peptic ulcer, and the amount is too large to ignore, so you need to go to the hospital and stop the bleeding. Most of the patients can usually get effective control of bleeding after medical treatment. There are also some stubborn ulcers that may remain untreated for a long time even after medical treatment, even with the dangerous condition of hemorrhage. 2, other complications Perforation: peptic ulcer most often perforated site is the duodenal bulb, where the intestinal wall is thin and prone to perforation, once perforation is an emergency, requiring surgical repair. Obstruction: Recurrent ulcers at the pyloric duct can lead to narrowing of the pyloric duct, resulting in the inability of gastric contents to enter the small intestine, with the typical symptom of vomiting overnight food. Cancer: It is believed that there is a 1%-5% probability that gastric ulcer will develop into cancer, and there is a relationship between gastric ulcer and gastric cancer, but it cannot be accurately predicted. Those with long history of gastric ulcer, large ulcer (ulcer larger than 2cm) and middle-aged or older ulcers that do not heal need to pay attention to exclude the possibility of cancer. Special reminder: a history of previous stomach pain and the appearance of epigastric pain with black stool or even vomiting blood is a sign of bleeding peptic ulcer and should not be ignored. Treatment should be reasonable and standardized. In life, you should reduce stress and self-regulate your emotions in time.