Bruce Springsteen postponed the remainder of the E Street Band’s September U.S. shows on Wednesday (Sept. 6) after revealing to fans in a note on Instagram that he was receiving treatment for peptic ulcer disease. The 73-year-old rock icon apologized to the faithful for the scotching of the nine September dates — beginning tonight (Sept. 7) with a show in Syracuse, NY — which were slated to last through a Sept. 29 gig at Nationals Park in Washington. D.C.
Springsteen’s post did not give any additional information on his medical issue, but Billboard reached out to Dr. Rudolph Bedford, a gastroenterologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA for more information on the painful, fairly common gastro condition.
Bedford, who does not have any first-hand knowledge of Springsteen’s health and was speaking in general terms on peptic ulcer disease, says that it can cause “sever abdominal pain… to the point of doubling you over.” He says that the condition is caused by an imbalance in the protective lining of the stomach. “The stomach is full of acid and whenever something in that acid destroys the protective lining the nerves in the stomach wall become inflamed and cause severe pain,” Bedford says.
The doctor adds there are several things that might cause the condition, most notably taking anti-inflammatory drugs such as Motrin or Aleve on an empty stomach, or other medications that can cause irritation when taken on an empty stomach.
Another possible cause is a helicobacter pylori infection, which is a bacterial infection in your stomach that Bedford says many people acquire at an early age for reasons that are not always clear; the bacteria sets up in the stomach at an early age and can cause inflammation of the stomach lining leading to ulceration. In the case of the latter, there is no way to know if the infection will cause medical issues later in life and children at not typically tested for it.
Springsteen appears to be a hale and hearty septuagenarian and Bedford says age is not the likeliest factor for the disease. “It can happen to anyone,” he says, adding the caveat that someone the Boss’ age is likely on a more medications than someone who is younger. “I would certainly think he’d be popping antacids and acid reducing meds all day,” Bedford says of the expected treatment.
Though it varies from person-to-person, “significant healing” typically occurs within a week or so; if the cause is H. pylori, Bedford says it could require a dose of antibiotics and acid-reducing meds that would clear the disease up within a week or two. “In this day and age, surgery is exceedingly rare and medications works quite well,” he says of the less typical, more intense surgical intervention.
Last month, Springsteen postponed two shows in Philadelphia at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Aug. 16 and 18 after falling ill; at the time there was not information on the ailment that caused that postponement.
Check out Springsteen’s post below.
