H. Pylori Infection Can Cause Urticaria and Angioedema!

Thanks to a recent blog post by medical blogger, Dr. Ves Dimov, I was made aware of how H. Pylori (Helicobacter pylori) infection of the stomach can cause chronic (idiopathic) urticaria as well as angioedema and that eradication of H. Pylori thru antibiotics and acid suppression can significantly improve the problem!

For those who do not know what H. pylori is... It is a germ that is the most important cause of gastritis and peptic ulcer disease. It can be diagnosed by measurement of H. pylori-specific (IgA and IgG) antibodies, urea breath test, or upper endoscopy. And... this germ is now becoming implicated in causing problems beyond the digestive system like angioedema and urticaria.

In one study, 88% of infected patients in whom the bacterium was eradicated after therapy showed a total or partial remission of urticaria symptoms. Symptoms remained unchanged in all uninfected patients.

Another study documented the disappearance (67%) or improvement of urticaria (24%) in most antimicrobially treated patients after 3-12 weeks.

Triple therapy is considered to be the standard treatment for children and adults. A proton pump inhibitor combined with two antibiotics has been shown to be very effective in clearing H pylori from the stomach. The current recommendation is treatment with amoxicillin, clarithromycin, and a proton pump inhibitor (Prevpac) for 2 weeks. Triple therapy regimens that are effective in children include a proton pump inhibitor combined with clarithromycin and metronidazole or amoxicillin and metronidazole.

References:
Beneficial effects of Helicobacter pylori eradication on idiopathic chronic urticaria. Dig Dis Sci 1998 Jun;43(6):1226-9.
Prevalence of Helicobacter pylori-associated gastritis in chronic urticaria. Int Arch Allergy Immunol 1998 Aug;116(4):288-94.

UK First Place in the World to Approve Botox for Migraine Headaches

Wall Street Journal reported on July 9, 2010 that the United Kingdom has become the first country in the world to approve botox injections for migraine headaches.

The U.K. approval could shortly precede a decision on migraine treatment from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Botox treatment for migraines can be obtained currently in the US, but is rarely covered by insurance.

Dr. Chang has been performing botox injections for migraines since 2006.

Read the WSJ article here.

Botox Bandits Rip Off Physicians

MSNBC reported on Aug 2, 2010 that there are patients who come and undergo thousands of dollars worth of botox injections and than skip out without paying...

Read the story here.

FDA Potentially to Approve Botox for Migraines

As reported in MSNBC today, FDA regulators seem inclined to approve Allergan Inc's wrinkle drug Botox to prevent migraine headaches in millions of Americans, industry analysts said, based on information the drugmaker released on Monday.

That would be great news for current patients of mine who receive botox for migraines. However, once FDA has approved botox for migraines, it may take awhile before it becomes an insurance "covered" procedure.

Read the MSNBC article here.

Read more about botox here.

Dr. Chang provides botox injections for migraine headaches, TMJ, spasmodic dysphonia, torticollis, and other head and neck spastic disorders.

Fauquier ENT Now on LinkedIn Networking Site

Fauquier ENT now has a LinkedIN profile. Check out the profile here.

LinkedIn is a business oriented social networking site.