Gastroenterology Services

Our specialist gastroenterology clinic provides comprehensive one-stop medical services for your gastric conditions, digestive diseases, liver & Hepatitis problems, providing you with efficient, safe, balanced and effective treatment for your illnesses.

Medical Conditions

Common gastroenterology conditions.

1. Upper abdominal pain
2. Bleeding per rectum
3. Non-specific abdominal pain
4. Liver inflammation as evident from a derange blood tests
5. Follow up for hepatitis B and C.

Helicobacter Pylori Infection

Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection occurs when a type of bacteria called Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infects your stomach. This usually happens during childhood. A common cause of peptic ulcers, H. pylori infection may be present in more than half the people in the world.

Most people don’t realize they have H. pylori infection, because they never get sick from it. If you develop signs and symptoms of a peptic ulcer, your doctor will probably test you for H. pylori infection. If you have H. pylori infection, it can be treated with antibiotics.

Symptoms

Most people with H. pylori infection will never have any signs or symptoms. It’s not clear why this is, but some people may be born with more resistance to the harmful effects of H. pylori.

When signs or symptoms do occur with H. pylori infection, they may include:

• An ache or burning pain in your abdomen
• Abdominal pain that’s worse when your stomach is empty
• Nausea
• Loss of appetite
• Frequent burping
• Bloating
• Unintentional weight loss

When to see a doctor

Make an appointment with your doctor if you notice any persistent signs and symptoms that worry you. Seek immediate medical help if you experience:

• Severe or persistent abdominal pain
• Difficulty swallowing
• Bloody or black tarry stools
• Bloody or black vomit or vomit that looks like coffee grounds

Diagnosis

Tests and procedures that we can do to determine whether you have an H. pylori infection:

• Blood test.  Helicobacter Pylori IgG – Analysis of a blood sample may reveal evidence of an active or previous H. pylori infection in your body. However, breath and stool tests are better at detecting active H. pylori infections than is a blood test.

• Urea Breath Test. During a breath test, you swallow a liquid that contains tagged carbon molecules. If you have an H. pylori infection, carbon is released when the solution is broken down in your stomach.Your body absorbs the carbon and expels it when you exhale. You exhale into a bag, and we will the do testing to detect the carbon molecules.  Acid-suppressing drugs known as proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), bismuth subsalicylate (Pepto-Bismol) and antibiotics can interfere with the accuracy of this test. You should stop taking those medications for a week or two weeks before you have the test.  This test is available for both adults and children.

• Gastroscopy.  This can be done as a day-surgery procedure.  During the exam, the specialist threads a long flexible tube equipped with a tiny camera (endoscope) down your throat and esophagus and into your stomach and duodenum.  The specialist will look for irregularities in your upper digestive tract and may remove tissue samples (biopsy) to analyze for H. pylori infection.  This test is more invasive than a urea breath test, it may be used to diagnose for H. pylori ulcers and also evaluate for other digestive conditions.

Consultant Gastroenterologist

• Dr Lai Wai Kwan Vincent
• MBChB (Sheffield), MRCP (Edinburgh), PhD (Birmingham), CCT (UK), Specialist Register (UK)