What is GERD?
Gastroesophageal reflux disease is a digestive disorder that involves stomach acid coming up from the stomach and into the esophagus, which is the connection between your mouth and your stomach that food moves down after swallowing. When this occurs the sufferer will experience heartburn or acid indigestion, which is a burning sensation in the upper abdomen and can be a cause of serious discomfort.
GERD occurs when the lower esophageal sphincter begins to malfunction, still opening to allow food to enter the stomach but not fully closing after to prevent digestive fluids (stomach acid) from moving up into the esophagus. Untreated gastroesophageal reflux disease creates the risk of an esophageal ulcer or Barretβs esophagus, which can then lead to esophageal cancer.
What Causes GERD?
Gastroesophageal reflux disease can be caused when a person suffers a hiatal hernia. This is when the upper part of the stomach moves into the chest through an opening in the diaphragmatic muscle that separates the abdomen from the chest. When this happens stomach contents are more easily able to pass through the small gaps created by the hernia, and this leads to acid reflux, heartburn, and acid indigestion.
GERD is also more likely for people who are significantly overweight or obese, have gastroparesis (delayed stomach emptying) or connective tissue disease like scleroderma, lupus, or rheumatoid arthritis. Pregnant women may also have GERD. For women who are pregnant they can expect to see a return to normal digestive function after childbirth.
GERD Symptoms
Heartburn, acid indigestion, and a general burning or painful sensation emanating from the lower esophagus are the standard GERD symptoms when a person has this condition. For many people these symptoms are worse when they are lying down or in a prone position. Stomach acid in your esophagus may also cause you to cough more, and other possibilities with this condition are swallowing difficulties, bad breath, or nausea. Some sufferers may also have difficulty sleeping.
GERD Treatment
Standard GERD treatment approaches include using H2 blocker and PPI (proton pump inhibitor) class drugs like Tagamet or Dexilant, and your doctor may also recommend that you avoid GERD trigger foods as part of your treatment regimen. This can be fatty foods, chocolate, caffeine, and peppermint. You may also be advised to cut back on alcoholic beverages.
It may also be advisable to eat smaller servings at meals as part of your GERD treatment, and chewing mouthfuls of food more thoroughly before swallowing. For cases of severe GERD surgery may be required, with options being TIF (transoral incisionless fundoplication, LINX surgery, or a Stretta procedure.
