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Peptic Ulcer

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  • First Online:
Pathology of the Gastrointestinal Tract

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Pathology ((EP))

  • 382 Accesses

Synonyms

Duodenal ulcer; Gastric ulcer; Gastroduodenal ulcers; Peptic erosions; Peptic ulcer disease

Definition

Peptic ulcers are the most common form of gastroduodenal ulcerations caused by the combined effect of acid and gastric pepsin. They are clinically defined as a mucosal break equal to or greater than 5 mm that extend through the muscularis mucosa, in the stomach or duodenum, organs that are normally exposed to acidic environment. As many as 70–80% of the cases of peptic ulcers are associated with Helicobacter pylorigastric infection, and 20–30% associated with the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), with 10% being idiopathic. Peptic ulcers are most commonly caused by a decrease in mucosal defense mechanisms that can be related to Helicobacter infection and/or NSAIDs use, allowing the action of acid and pepsin on an unprotected gastroduodenal mucosa. Uncommonly, they are associated with hypersecretory states like gastrinomas (Zollinger-Ellison syndrome)....

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References and Further Reading

  • Cryer, B., & Spechler, S. J. (2010). Peptic ulcer disease. In M. Feldman, L. S. Friedman, & L. J. Brandt (Eds.) Sleisenger & Fordtran’s gastrointestinal and liver disease (9th ed.). Philadelphia: Saunders, Elsevier.

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  • Malfertheiner, P., Megraud, F., O’Morain, C., et al. (2012). Management of Helicobacter pylori infection – The Maastricht IV/Florence Consensus Report. Gut, 61, 646–664.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tytgat, G. N. (2011). Etiopathogenetic principles and peptic ulcer disease classification. Digestive Diseases, 29(5), 454–458.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Serviço de Gastrenterologia, Portuguese Oncology Institute, Rua Dr. Bernardino de Almeida, 4200-072, Porto, Portugal

    Pedro Pimentel-Nunes, Ricardo Marcos-Pinto & Mário Dinis-Ribeiro

  2. Instituto Português de Oncologia (IPO - Porto), Cintesis (FMUP-UP), Porto, Portugal

    Pedro Pimentel-Nunes & Mário Dinis-Ribeiro

  3. Centro Hospitalar do Porto, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar (ICBAS-UP), Cintesis (FMUP-UP), Porto, Portugal

    Ricardo Marcos-Pinto

Authors
  1. Pedro Pimentel-Nunes
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  2. Ricardo Marcos-Pinto
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  3. Mário Dinis-Ribeiro
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Pedro Pimentel-Nunes .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Medicine of Porto University, Centro Hospitalar São João and Ipatimup/i3S, Porto, Portugal

    Fátima Carneiro

  2. Serviço de Anatomia Patológica, Instituto Português de Oncologia de Lisboa de Francisco Gentil, Lisbon, Portugal

    Paula Chaves

  3. Faculdade de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade da Beira Interior, Covilhã, Portugal

    Paula Chaves

  4. Department of Pathology, Ankara University Medical School, Sihhiye, Ankara, Turkey

    Arzu Ensari

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© 2017 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Pimentel-Nunes, P., Marcos-Pinto, R., Dinis-Ribeiro, M. (2017). Peptic Ulcer. In: Carneiro, F., Chaves, P., Ensari, A. (eds) Pathology of the Gastrointestinal Tract. Encyclopedia of Pathology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40560-5_1665

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40560-5_1665

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-40559-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-40560-5

  • eBook Packages: MedicineReference Module Medicine

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