Dar es Salaam. For some patients, treating Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is no longer a straightforward process, with doctors reporting cases in which commonly used medicines fail to clear the infection.<\/p>\n
The bacterium, which can cause inflammation of the stomach lining, peptic ulcers and, in the long term, increase the risk of stomach cancer, is common in Tanzania and many other parts of the world.<\/p>\n
Its symptoms, including stomach pain, bloating, heartburn and nausea, are increasingly being reported by patients seeking medical care.<\/p>\n
Health experts, however, are concerned about possible antibiotic resistance, which can make standard treatment less effective and leave patients experiencing recurring symptoms.<\/p>\n
For Jeremiah Isdory, the problem returned twice within six months despite treatment for peptic ulcers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had been experiencing stomach pain for a very long time.. When I went to hospital, I was diagnosed with peptic ulcers and given treatment. After two months, the problem returned,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Another patient said he underwent treatment for H. pylori with month-long courses of medication more than twice before seeking care at another hospital.\u00a0 \u201cI went to another hospital where I was given medication for two weeks. That helped and the bacteria was gone,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The experiences have highlighted the importance of testing, appropriate treatment and follow-up, particularly as doctors report encountering cases in which some medicines no longer work as expected.<\/p>\n
Aga Khan Hospital gastroenterologist and hepatologist Dr Masolwa Ng\u2019wanasai said H. pylori requires proper diagnosis and treatment and patients should not start medication before consulting a health professional.<\/p>\n
\u201cFrom our experience as health professionals, we have recently encountered a challenge of drug resistance in this bacterium. Some medicines that have been used for a long time are no longer treating the infection effectively,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Dr Ng\u2019wanasai said some patients may need alternative medicines or referral to another facility where the required treatment is available. However, he noted that Tanzania does not yet have a national study establishing the extent of H. pylori drug resistance. \u201cSo far, we have not seen any study that has been conducted in the country on this challenge,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Health\u2019s Director of Medical Services, Hamad Nyembea, said H. pylori is treated with antibiotics in accordance with national treatment guidelines. He said patients should undergo testing after completing treatment to determine whether the infection has been cleared.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs with other diseases, after completing the course of treatment, a patient should be tested to confirm whether they have recovered. If the bacteria is still present, the patient should continue treatment according to the guidelines. Therefore, there are times when a patient may need to take additional medication,\u201d Mr Nyembea said.<\/p>\n
According to the treatment guidelines, initial H. pylori therapy includes a proton pump inhibitor (PPI), clarithromycin and amoxicillin. Where resistance develops, patients may need second-line treatment.<\/p>\n
Dr Ngwegwe Damas warned against self-medication, particularly buying antibiotics from pharmacies without first undergoing medical assessment.<\/p>\n
He said patients could end up taking the wrong medicine or dose, potentially contributing to antimicrobial resistance. \u201cIt is very important for people to follow proper hospital treatment instead of treating themselves or going to a pharmacy to obtain medicine without undergoing tests. This will help patients receive the right treatment depending on the severity of their condition,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Dr Damas also advised patients to undergo follow-up testing at the time recommended by their doctor rather than assuming that the infection has cleared because symptoms have disappeared. \u201cIt is very important to test again four weeks after treatment to confirm that the bacteria has been completely eliminated and to prevent the problem from recurring,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Consultant nephrologist at Benjamin Mkapa Hospital Dr Kessy Shija said inappropriate or prolonged use of some medicines could contribute to antimicrobial resistance.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes certain medicines may have already led to resistance. When a patient keeps coming back, resistance can develop,\u201d he said. Dr Shija said recurring symptoms should not automatically lead to patients being given the same medicines without further assessment.<\/p>\n
He urged patients to provide doctors with a complete history of previous treatment, including medicines they had already taken and tests they had undergone. \u201cA patient should say that they have previously been treated with these particular medicines or that they have undergone tests several times and received certain medication. This enables the doctor to determine the appropriate way to help them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Experts also warned that frequently changing health facilities without providing previous treatment records can make it difficult for doctors to establish a patient\u2019s medical history and determine the appropriate next step.<\/p>\n
H. pylori can spread between people through contaminated food or water and poor hand hygiene. Experts say the risk may be higher in areas with inadequate sanitation and limited access to safe water.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Dar es Salaam. For some patients, treating Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) is no longer a straightforward process, with…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":745822,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[59,102,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-745821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-gb","tag-health","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/745821","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=745821"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/745821\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/745822"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=745821"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=745821"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=745821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}