Stomach Ulcer Types

 What Are Duodenal, Gastric, Peptic And Bleeding Ulcers?

Types of stomach ulcers There are different names for several stomach ulcer types, and these sometimes confuse those who may have recently been diagnosed with this stomach problem. The goal of this article is to clear up some of the uncertainty about which of the stomach ulcer types you may have and to answer some fundamental questions about types of stomach ulcers: what is a gastric ulcer? Is a duodenal ulcer really the same thing as a peptic ulcer? What is a bleeding ulcer? And does having a stomach ulcer make it more likely you'll get stomach cancer?

As always, however, your doctor is your best source of information on different stomach ulcer types and everything else related to stomach problems. This article is intended solely to provide basic and introductory information to readers with no medical training or experience.

A stomach ulcer is a raw area of the stomach lining that causes a burning or aching stomach pain. Pain from a stomach ulcer usually occurs in the middle of upper abdomen, and many people who have a stomach ulcer mistake this pain for heartburn or acid reflux. The discomfort often occurs a few hours after a meal. 

In a normal stomach, there's a layer of protective mucous that prevents the stomach from being digested or destroyed by its own stomach acid. But sometimes a breakdown occurs in this layer and hydrochloric acid causes an open sore or ulcer in this lining.

There can be a number of possible causes for the different types of stomach ulcers.

Stomach ulcer types There are several different kinds of stomach ulcers, and their names are often determined by their location in the digestive tract.

Peptic ulcer This type of stomach ulcer can occur on the inside lining of the esophagus, in the stomach itself, or stomach or  in the duodenum.  Peptic ulcer is more or less a generic name for all types of ulcers that are generally called "stomach ulcers." Peptic ulcers can then be further defined by their location in the gasdtrointestinal tract.

Gastric ulcer is the type most people think of when they hear the words stomach ulcer. A gastric ulcer is found inside the stomach itself. A gastric ulcer can be especially dangerous because it may be cancerous. In other words, a person with a gastric ulcer could get stomach cancer.

Duodenal ulcer is a type of stomach ulcer that occurs in the duodenum, which is Stomach ulcers sometimes cause additional complications, including bleeding. Bleeding occurs when an area of the stomach becomes so raw and open that the lining starts to bleed. This is known as a bleeding ulcer (see below).

Esophageal ulcer As you may suspect from the name, this is a stomach ulcer type that occurs above the stomach in the esophagus.

Bleeding ulcer This is the kind of ulcer that penetrates the lining of the gastrointestinal tract so deeply that it actually causes internal bleeding. A bleeding ulcer can produce scary symptoms like coughing up blood and blood in stools. Sometimess treatment with drugs is possible, but surgery to cauterize the bleeding ulcer may be necessary.

We have individual articles on bleeding ulcers, duodenal ulcers, peptic ulcers and gastric ulcers.