Achlorhydria (patient information)

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What is achlorhydria?

How do I know if I have achlorhydria and what are the symptoms of achlorhydria?

Patients with achlorhyria may have signs and aymptoms as the following:

Impaired digestion or indigestion, undigested food in stools
Nausea
Bloating
Diarrhea or constipation
Increased susceptibility to bacterial and parasitic infection in stomach
Iron deficiency
Cracked nails

Other health problems may also cause these symptoms. Only a doctor can tell for sure. A person with any of these symptoms should tell the doctor so that the problems can be diagnosed and treated as early as possible.

Who is at risk for achlorhydria?

Prior gastric bypass surgery
Chronic gastric H pylori infection
Chronic proton pump inhibitor (PPI) use
Autoimmune conditions, such as diabetes, autoimmune thyroid disease.
Elderly individuals

How to know you have achlorhydria?

Measurement of basal acid secretion and gastric pH: These are the most important and basic study to prove the presence of the condition of achlorhydria. In patients with achlorhydric, more than 50% of them whose initial stomach pH is 4.0 or higher.
Gastrin levels: Serum gastrin level in patients with achlorhydria is very high. A serum gastrin levels higher than 500-1000 pg/mL may suggest a diagnosis of achlorhydria.
Antiparietal cell antibody testing: Achlorhydria shows a strong association with autoimmune conditions. Many patients with achlorhydria can be detected antiparietal cell antibody.
Blood tests: Blood tests such as iron indices, calcium, prothrombin time, vitamin B-12, vitamin D, serum folate, and thiamine levels should be checked to exclude deficiencies and anemia.
Endoscopy and biopsy: Endoscopy is an very important test used in patients with suspected achlorhydria. This test can help find the cause of achlorhydria. During the procedure, after you are sedated, an endoscope which is a thin, flexible, lighted tube was passed down your throat. Then the doctor can view the lining of your esophagus, stomach, and first part of the small intestine. If abnormal areas are noted, biopsy can be obtained through the endoscope. The tissue samples will be checked by pathologist under a microscope to see what is the cause of achlorhydria.

When to seek urgent medical care?

Call your health care provider if symptoms of achlorhydria develop.

Treatment options

Achlorhydria is often the result of another disease process, so the treatment is usually focused on the underlying condition.

For achlorhydria associated with immune-mediated conditions, such as insulin dependent diabetes, autoimmune thyroiditis, treatment of these disorders should also be the first. However, treatment of these diseases has no known effect in the treatment of achlorhydria.
The standard therapy for achlorhydria associated with H pylori infection is to eradication H pylori by PPI plus clarithromycin plus amoxicillin. For patients who are allergic to penicillin, amoxicillin can be replaced by levofloxacin.
For achlorhydria resulting from anti-inflammatory medications, the treatment is stopping taking the drugs. If anti-inflammatory medications must be taken, the patient may benefit by ingesting them with meals or milk.
Treatment of gastritis that leads to pernicious anemia consists of parenteral vitamin B-12 injection.
Achlorhydria resulting from long-term PPI use may be treated by dose reduction or withdrawal of the PPI.

Surgery: Hypergastrinemia due to achlorhydria secondary to PPI therapy or resection of the gastric fundus is known to cause enterochromaffin-like (ECL) cells hyperplasia and gastric carcinoids. Surgery is the only potentially curative therapy for carcinoid tumors.
Antibacteria therapy: Antimicrobials such as metronidazole, amoxicillin-clavulanate potassium, ciprofloxacin, or rifaximin are suggested to treat bacterial overgrowth.
Nutritional supplementation
Dietary counseling