Non-erosive gastritis

[Benh]

Hello all, I have been diagnosed with stress induced non erosive gastritis following my acute c diff. Fortunately, the the endoscopy biopsy did not show h-pylori, which was as a huge relief. I am nearing the end of a long vanco taper, pulse from my first relapse. The dr prescribed Prilosec, 20 mg twice a day. Naturally, I am a little apprehensive about taking it since it has some known connection to c diff. I have looked and searched for alternative natural remedies and will incorporate some into my diet, like manuka honey and staying away from certain foods, which I really didn't eat anyway. My main symptom is pain in the rib cage area, not really related to timing of eating though. Has anyone had a poor experience with Prilosec? I think it will be for a short duration of few months but the dr was unclear. Also, has anyone found success treating gastritis without medication or with other medications that don't have a c diff connection? Thank you.

[roy]

Sounds like the Drs treating the symptoms but not the cause!
I might be wrong but your Dr just diagnosed you with heartburn! They said it in a medical way but that's what us mortals would call it!
I would be trying OTC meds like gaviscon before I resorted to PPIs.

[sophie]

Ben,
That's great news bout the H Pylori. Sometimes I suffer heartburn to when I eat but I've been avoiding taking anything. The GI I saw (notice I don't say my GI) suggested Priolosec but I'm not interested. Maybe just a tums here and there. How close are you to the end of your taper?

[Benh]

Thanks for the replies Roy and Sophie. I don't know if mine is classic heartburn though. Mine is a fairly constant pain in my lower ribcage/sternum area. It is odd because I had the pain all through my acute c diff and it is the one symptom that has been the most constant. The pain isn't nearly as bad as when I had the full blown c diff though and frankly seemed to be better a month ago than it is now. I have no burning or belching either. The endoscopy just said non erosive gastritis in two locations. I will talk to the dr about alternatives...I did try 10 mg of Prilosec this am and then again tonight and frankly haven't noticed any difference, although maybe it takes a while to have an effect. Sophie, my vanco taper was enlongated by my dr and my anxiety of a relapse so I am now going down from one a day to one every 36 hrs for the next week, then one every other day for two weeks, then every third day for three weeks, then done...and pray! Ben

[beth22]

I got gastritis after c diff too. I don't remember having it before. Prilosec gives me D, I had to take it as a prep for a procedure once and it did not agree with me, but I would not take it anyway because it has been implicated with c difficile. I just take a Tums sometimes. Ask your doctor if a particular diet might help you. Obviously, nothing spicy.

[Benh]

Thanks, Beth. I am going over my diet and may give Prilosec a one week trial and then see. I would much rather do the other antacids that you guys are referring to.

[amg]

Good luck, benh.

I think this University of Maryland article has some good information on gastritis.

Here's what they say about nutrition:
******Quote: Doctors used to recommend eating bland foods with milk and only small amounts of food with each meal. Researchers now know that such a diet is not required to treat gastritis or ulcers.

Following these nutritional tips may help reduce symptoms:

Foods containing flavonoids, like apples, celery, cranberries (including cranberry juice), onions, garlic, and tea may inhibit the growth of H. pylori.
Eat antioxidant-rich foods, including fruits (such as blueberries, cherries, and tomatoes), and vegetables (such as squash and bell peppers).
Eat foods high in B vitamins and calcium, such as almonds, beans, whole grains (if no allergy), dark leafy greens (such as spinach and kale), and sea vegetables.
Avoid refined foods, such as white breads, pastas, and sugar.
Eat lean meats, cold-water fish, tofu (soy, if no allergy) or beans for protein.
Use healthy oils, such as olive oil.
Reduce or eliminate trans fatty acids, found in commercially-baked goods, such as cookies, crackers, cakes, French fries, onion rings, donuts, processed foods, and margarine.
Avoid beverages that may irritate the stomach lining or increase acid production including coffee (with or without caffeine), alcohol, and carbonated beverages.
Drink 6 to 8 glasses of filtered water daily.
Exercise at least 30 minutes daily, 5 days a week.
Identify and eliminate food allergies.****End Quote

Now obviously that's going to be complicated by what you can tolerate with c diff. So sorry you're going through this. Hang in there.

[Benh]

Thank you! It has gotten worse over the past few days, although I have some increased stressors at work and I think I am settling into a bit of an IBS patter too. So far I will say that my diet has been very bland but I am going to introduce some of these easy items slowly. I did just introduce manuka honey, which I actually like. Thanks again and I will report back.

[shooten]

I had severe gastritis back in 2014. I was on a 40mg dose of omeprazole for 6 months to cure it. I was on a very bland diet and ended up losing 30 pounds because of it. I have c diff right now and am finishing my vancomycin taper/pulse run. I am onto the pulse portion now and have been having a lot of stomach tenderness similar to when I had gastritis. I have been taking ranitidine (zantac) to help it. PPIs have been shown to potentially help c diff grow, but they haven't said much about H2 blockers so if I were you I would talk to your doctor about getting some ranitidine. I think the OTC zantac strongest dose is 150mg but you can get 300mg prescription, plus at least for me, prescription is significantly cheaper. Also if you have to go on omeprazole for an extended amount of time be wary of rebound acid reflux. I had this when I stopped my omeprazole. I was in incredible amounts of pain, I ended up having to get back on the omeprazole and then tapering off of it. I did 2 weeks of 40mg omeprazole, then 2 weeks of 25mg omeprazole, then 2 weeks of 2 a day 300mg ranitidine, then 2 weeks of 1 a day 300mg ranitidine, and then I was able to take it as needed. Some people if they can't drop off the 300mg ranitidine to as needed they will drop the dose to 150mg.