Question:
What can I do post operatively to avoid ever getting an ulcer?

I am aware that the 'second" stomach can still get one no matter what I do but what about if I took two tablespoons of Mylanta per day to cut down on stomach acid. I don't have any ulcers now but want to prevent any from occuring. What is the best way to go about this. An ounce of prevention goes a long way....    — Dawn M. (posted on March 10, 2002)

March 10, 2002
Hi! I was just treated for an ulcer. Please stay away from Advil/Motrin or any other iboprofen products. I was given a shot of Motrin in the emergency room for a sprained ankle. This is what caused my ulcer. I was unaware that Motrin has iboprofen in it. Hope this helps - Tracy
   — tracyr

March 10, 2002
I take pepcid 2x a day and have done so since early post op. I am almost 2 yrs out still taking it with my doctors approval , of course. I would not do this on my own unless it was aproved by my doctor.
   — Rose A.

March 10, 2002
I asked my surgeon the exact same question after surgery since I had a friend who had RNY and developed an ulcer the first year and almost died. He told me pepcid twice a day from here on out. I am 11 months out and no problems. I had an ulcer that was healed before surgery and still have had no reoccurance.
   — Randy L.

March 10, 2002
Are you referring to marginal ulcer? I've never really heard of any post-ops getting a regular ulcer on the pouch wall, but marginal ulcer is fairly common. It forms right at/on the stoma. Our docs send us home with Prilosec or Prevacid, good healthy dose. But that doesn't always prevent for those of us who once were professional ulcer factories. I had several between my original surgery & my revision. PROBABLY because the staple line was compromised JUST slightly from very early on, so the acid could just dribble a little into the pouch, then gravity sends it right to the stoma. Perfect, huh? They were easily fixed, as I became very astute at recognizing the symptoms. I have had none since my revision/transection. The only time I suspected it was when I was playing with the supposedly safe Celebrex for osteo-arthritis. Um, not safe. AS someone said, avoiding known pouch-burners, such as NSAIDS, aspirin, ibuprofen, erythromycin, tetraclycline & the like will be about what YOU can do for yourself.
   — vitalady