Early in the morning, my good friend Ms. Wang called, Big good news, she was pregnant. Originally quite happy things, Ms. Wang’s conversation turned, after a short excitement was worried and afraid. It turned out that three days ago, when Ms. Wang did not know she was pregnant, because her stomach was not very comfortable, she went to the hospital and the doctor suggested to check Helicobacter pylori, so she accepted the carbon 14 breath test.
But then Ms. Wang heard people say that the capsules swallowed during the carbon 14 breath test had radiation, which was not good for her health and immediately worried.
In fact, Ms. Wang’s situation is very common. Many people have some doubts about breath test, such as:
Is there really radiation in the carbon 14 breath test?
Can I still do it when I am pregnant?
Why do various methods for examining Helicobacter pylori have different results?
What should I do if the test result is positive?
Today, Dr. Clove invited Dr. Zhang Yuyu from the Digestive Department to answer questions.
Is there really radiation in the carbon 14 breath test?
At present, the most commonly used methods for detecting Helicobacter pylori in hospitals are carbon 13 and carbon 14 breath tests.
For the carbon 14 respiration test that everyone has been worried about, it does have radiation, but the radiation energy is extremely weak and negligible.
For example, the radiation received by a carbon 14 breath test is equivalent to the radiation received by a plane for one hour. Will we be unhealthy because we have been on a plane for a while?
Obviously not.
Up to now, there have been no reports of adverse reactions of carbon 14 breath test in the world. Professional organizations in many countries, including the United States, believe that carbon 14 breath test is safe and harmless to the environment, patients and operators.
Therefore, in a situation like Ms. Wang’s, there is no need to worry about the impact of radiation.
Seeing this, someone may want to ask:
But sometimes doctors also advise pregnant women and children not to do carbon 14 breathing tests!
In fact, most of the time doctors only consider that most patients are still afraid and worried anyway, so they verbally suggest pregnant women and children to choose carbon 13 breath tests without radiation at all.
But in practice, the carbon 14 breath test really has no effect on the body.
See here, may want to ask again:
Since carbon 13 has no radiation at all, why not use carbon 13? Is the result of carbon 14 more accurate?
In terms of accuracy, the two breath tests are the same, but the carbon 14 breath test has an advantage, which is cheaper than the carbon 13 breath test.
In this way, is it much easier to choose?
Pay Attention to what in Breathing Test?
1. Can I eat before the examination?
Don’t eat 2 hours before the breath test. In order to avoid food residues in your mouth, you can rinse your mouth before examination.
Don’t eat, drink water or drink during the inspection. The whole process will take a few minutes and end with patience.
After the examination, you can drink more water to help the reagent drain out of the body faster.
2. Does saliva come out when exhaling affect the examination results?
Exhalation test examination naturally focuses on exhalation. If saliva comes out when exhaling, don’t worry, this will not affect the examination results, but remember not to inhale backwards!
3. When is it not suitable for breath test?
- If you have taken antibiotics within one month, do not carry out breath test. If you have been taking drugs to treat Helicobacter pylori, review them at least one month after stopping the drugs. If the upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage is acute, it may cause false negative results. If the gastrointestinal hemorrhage lasts for more than one week, it can be done without affecting the diagnosis.
Of course, if you don’t know if you can do it, consult a doctor and they will tell you clearly.
Check helicobacter pylori, which method is more [accurate]?
Many people have received different Helicobacter pylori tests and have different results. Which one should prevail?
1. Breathing test: gold standard
Breathing test is currently the most widely used method to detect Helicobacter pylori. It is simple to operate and non-invasive, and belongs to the [gold standard] for detecting Helicobacter pylori.
2. Gastroscopy: Further confirmation of other diseases
Many people not only suffer from stomach discomfort, but also suffer from epigastric pain, vomiting, blackened stool and other conditions at ordinary times. At this time, doctors often suggest a gastroscopy to determine whether there is Helicobacter pylori infection on the one hand, and whether there is any possibility of other diseases (such as gastric ulcer and gastric cancer) on the other.
3. Blood test: It is easy to have [false negative] and [false positive]
After Helicobacter pylori infection, corresponding antibodies will be produced in the body, so the antibody level of Helicobacter pylori can be detected by blood drawing.
But what about… … …
On the one hand, this antibody may not be exposed until several months after infection with Helicobacter pylori. Therefore, false negative results often occur when this test is performed at the initial stage of infection.
On the other hand, even if Helicobacter pylori is eradicated, the existing antibodies in the blood still need time (e.g. 1-2 years) to slowly disappear, so false positive results will appear after the examination just after the treatment.
In short, it will [slow down].
Helicobacter pylori positive, the how office?
If Helicobacter pylori is found to be positive, it is recommended to perfect gastroscopy regardless of vomiting, abdominal distension, blackened stool, etc.
However, you don’t have to be too nervous. Gastroscopy is only to further confirm your physical condition.
- If it is clear that it is chronic gastritis or gastric ulcer or even gastric cancer, it is recommended to eradicate Helicobacter pylori. If someone in the family suffers from gastric cancer, it is also recommended to eradicate Helicobacter pylori. If there is no organic disease in gastroscopy, no one in the family has suffered from gastric cancer, and there is nothing uncomfortable at ordinary times, but if the physical examination finds Helicobacter pylori positive, there is no need to treat Helicobacter pylori.