News from Phu Tho General Hospital said that the hospital had just treated a patient with severe gastrointestinal bleeding after using “portable” medicine from abroad to treat pain.
The patient is Mrs. Nguyen TM (born in 1959, in Phu Ninh district, Phu Tho) who was recently admitted to the hospital complaining of abdominal pain and fatigue.
According to the patient, she has a history of hypertension and an old traumatic brain injury due to a traffic accident with no sequelae.
Five days after entering the hospital, the patient had hand pain so he took a medicine brought from Thailand to relieve the pain, taking 4 pills a day, divided into 2 times. Previously, the patient saw her husband using this medicine to relieve pain, so she took it herself.
3 days after taking the medicine, the patient experienced abdominal pain, heartburn, belching and fatigue. The patient self-monitored at home for 2 days but did not improve, accompanied by black stools, so he went to Phu Tho Provincial General Hospital for examination.
When admitted to the hospital, the patient was awake, had epigastric pain, extreme fatigue, dizziness, vertigo, vomited a small amount of black fluid, had black stools, and blood pressure was 100/60mmHg.
The medicine the patient is taking is sent from abroad, without additional stamps, without information about the importer and responsible for the product, etc. Photo BSCC
Gastrointestinal endoscopy results showed gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer; Red blood cells in the blood decrease sharply. The patient was diagnosed with: Severe gastrointestinal bleeding due to gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer. Patients are treated with oxygen, fluids, blood transfusions, and gastric mucosal secretion reduction.
A doctor examines a patient with stomach bleeding after arbitrarily taking painkillers of unknown origin. BSCC photo
After 2 days of treatment, the patient had less abdominal pain, no fever, no vomiting, had black stools, and hemodynamic stability. After 6 days of treatment, the patient no longer had abdominal pain, dizziness, or yellow stools, and blood test indicators returned to normal.
The patient is discharged from the hospital, continues to take medication at home according to the doctor’s prescription and is advised on the lifestyle after treatment for gastrointestinal bleeding.
Doctor Bui Manh Cuong, Head of the Department of Respiratory and Gastroenterology, said that gastrointestinal bleeding due to gastric and duodenal ulcers is an internal-surgical emergency. This is a condition in which blood flows from the blood vessels into the digestive tract, and the patient exhibits symptoms of vomiting blood and/or black stools. This condition is very dangerous if not detected early.
Many patients only show symptoms of fatigue and small amounts of black stools, so they subjectively do not go to the hospital for examination immediately but monitor them at home, until they feel tired, dizzy, dizzy, or faint before going to the hospital. There are even many patients who come to the hospital in life-threatening hemorrhagic shock.
“According to studies, the mortality rate of this disease is 10-20%. Therefore, it is necessary to diagnose as early as possible, to have timely treatment and emergency measures,” Dr. Cuong shared.
Dr. Cuong also warned people about using drugs without a doctor’s prescription, leading to long-term health consequences. In particular, nowadays many patients buy their own medicines based on word of mouth, buy medicines according to someone else’s prescription, or buy medicines of unknown origin from abroad to use, leading to unpredictable consequences.
In addition, there are some other cases where patients arbitrarily use pain relievers or anti-inflammatory drugs for long-term or short-term use but they already have stomach diseases such as: Inflammation, gastric ulcer, duodenal ulcer. … leading to a very high risk of gastrointestinal bleeding.
More dangerously, there are cases where patients self-use strong anti-inflammatory painkillers sent from abroad without consulting a doctor, leading to serious consequences.
“Many foreign bone and joint medicines that people often buy contain non-steroidal anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving active ingredients. In addition to the anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving effects, they will affect the stomach, causing ulcers and even ulcers. complications of gastrointestinal bleeding. Therefore, consult your doctor before using these drugs,” Dr. Cuong warned.
According to Dr. Cuong, the Department of Respiratory and Gastroenterology has also received many cases of patients arbitrarily taking drugs of unknown origin, taking drugs prescribed by others, or taking drugs by word of mouth, leading to gastrointestinal bleeding. , liver failure, kidney failure.
“When you see symptoms of illness, pain, sickness, fatigue… you should go to the hospital for examination and treatment according to the doctor’s instructions. Do not arbitrarily buy drugs of unknown origin to treat the disease to avoid Money lost, disability,” Dr. Cuong advised.
