Experts warn: gastritis can develop unnoticed, and the first signs are often mistaken for fatigue or stress.
Not all forms of gastritis are accompanied by common symptoms such as pain, heartburn, or discomfort. The so-called "silent" gastritis progresses almost unnoticed, and the first changes in the gastric mucosa may go unnoticed. According to gastroenterologist Ekaterina Kanishcheva from the MEDSI clinic in Kotelniki, it is important to know what to pay attention to in order not to miss the onset of the inflammatory process.
Why Gastritis Can Be Asymptomatic
The most common forms of gastritis — infectious (Helicobacter pylori), atrophic, and autoimmune — do not cause pain due to the low number of pain receptors in the gastric mucosa. Often, typical complaints that patients associate with gastritis actually turn out to be functional dyspepsia or symptoms of other diseases, such as cholelithiasis or ulcers.
First Signs to Pay Attention To
- A slight heaviness or feeling of fullness after eating.
- Unstable appetite.
- Periodic nausea without pain.
- Bloating, rumbling, feeling of "slowed" digestion.
- Belching or unpleasant taste in the mouth.
These symptoms can easily be attributed to stress, work routine, or fatigue, making "silent" gastritis difficult to detect early.
Diagnostic Methods
- GastroPanel helps determine atrophic or autoimmune gastritis and detect Helicobacter pylori infection.
- C-13 Urea Breath Test and stool antigen tests for H. pylori — to confirm infection.
- Esophagogastroduodenoscopy with biopsy — the "gold standard" that allows for a morphological diagnosis and early detection of inflammation.
Ultrasound of the abdominal organs is not very informative in this case, and blood tests can only indirectly indicate anemia or vitamin B12 deficiency.
When Urgent Diagnosis Is Needed
- Decrease in hemoglobin or ferritin, increased ESR.
- Elevated leukocytes.
- Blood in stool.
- Difficulty swallowing, rapid weight loss, increased heart rate, or drop in blood pressure.
- Vomiting after eating.
Prevention and Safety Measures
Even in the absence of complaints, especially after the age of 45, it is recommended to undergo esophagogastroduodenoscopy for early detection of atrophic gastritis and prevention of stomach cancer. If there is a family history of oncology, screening should be done earlier. If H. pylori is detected, the doctor prescribes eradication therapy.
Timely diagnosis helps stop the progression of inflammation and reduce the risk of complications, even if the disease progresses "silently."
