Understanding H. Pylori Infection & Treatment

Question
Hi,
My husband, 35 years old, has been suffering from chronic belching/ burping (only gas, no acid) for the past two years. There are NO OTHER symptoms - pain, bloating, etc. -that accompany this burping. Recently, when he mentioned this to his doctor during an annual physical, the doctor recommended a test for pylori that came positive. All other tests - kidney, liver, sodium, etc. were normal.

The doctor left it to us to take a two week course of antibiotics. Next week, we're visiting a gastroentologist to confirm the pylori infection and learn more about treatment options.

I was reading on the Internet that excessive belching is also a symptom of other fatal diseases like duodenal ulcer or even stomach cancer. Should we be getting an endoscopy done to rule out these ailments? My husband's immediate family is fairly healthy but his paternal grandfather has duodenal ulcer and paternal grandmother died of kidney cancer.

Please advise.

Thank you for your time.

-Deepa


Answer
Hi Deepa,
There is more to treating H. Pylori than just antibiotics. For your doctor to "leave it up to you" is not appropriate. You should be on a full regimen to treat H. Pylori. If the symptoms don't go away after that, then an endoscopy is in order.