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Query: UMLS:C0017168 (gastroesophageal reflux disease)
 11,783 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

It is imperative to assess the psychosocial factors that may influence the subjective experiences and pain behavior of persons with chronic unexplained chest pain. Both psychologists and physicians tend to rely on self-report measures of psychological distress, which provide little unique information about patients with chronic chest pain to differentiate them from patients with other painful disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome, gastroesophageal reflux disease, or coronary artery disease. However, assessment of pain-coping strategies, spouse responses to the patient's pain behaviors, and pain thresholds for esophageal balloon distention do differentiate patients with chronic chest pain from healthy controls and patients with various other chronic pain disorders. Specifically, chronic chest pain patients tend to use relatively passive pain-coping strategies such as praying and hoping, and to report relatively high levels of spouse reinforcement of pain behaviors. Finally, in response to esophageal balloon distention, chronic chest pain patients display low pain thresholds that do not generalize to stimulation by mechanical finger pressure. Preliminary evidence suggests these low thresholds are due primarily to a tendency to set low standards for making pain judgments regarding esophageal stimuli of moderate-to-high intensity levels.
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PMID:Psychosocial and psychophysical assessments of patients with unexplained chest pain. 159 68

The esophageal origin of angina-like noncardiac chest pain can be identified with certainty only when spontaneous chest pain episodes are associated with gastroesophageal reflux, abnormal esophageal motility, or both. Since noncardiac chest pain typically occurs infrequently, prolonged monitoring is required to establish such an association. Ambulatory esophageal monitoring offers the additional advantages of studying the patient in everyday life and avoiding hospital admission. Although the amplification and storage of 24-hour signals in a portable recorder no longer poses technical problems, the complexity of the analysis of the recorded signals should not be underestimated. For noncardiac chest pain, the most relevant part of the analysis is the association between chest pain episodes and the recorded esophageal signals. To determine whether contraction amplitude or duration during chest pain episodes is abnormal, their measurements are compared with baseline values from the same patient. Fully automated analysis by computer is feasible and, since it avoids observer bias, preferable. The yield of 24-hour monitoring in noncardiac chest pain reported by different groups of investigators varies considerably. Motor abnormalities have been identified as the cause of chest pain in 4.5-18% of patients studied, and reflux in 4.5-25%. In addition, some patients had both dysmotility- and reflux-related pain episodes. As expected, the yield of the technique is higher in patients with frequent pain episodes. In patients who do not experience pain during 24-hour monitoring, the technique cannot provide a firm diagnosis of pain of esophageal origin. Recently, a much higher yield of 24-hour monitoring was reported in patients with noncardiac chest pain admitted to a coronary-care unit. A total of 76% of these patients were found to have either reflux- or dysmotility-related chest pain. Despite its relatively low yield, the addition of esophageal pressure monitoring to ambulatory pH monitoring is worthwhile and probably also cost-effective in patients with frequent episodes of unexplained chest pain.
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PMID:Ambulatory esophageal monitoring in noncardiac chest pain. 159 69

During the session on diagnostic testing, various diagnostic tests used to identify the cause of chest pain were discussed. This critique of diagnostic assessments of the complex etiology of chest pain is presented as a contribution toward further investigation and clarification of this difficult clinical syndrome. The first step in the evaluation process is to exclude coronary artery disease. Patients with angina and normal coronary artery flow may have atypical disease, such as microvascular angina or syndrome X. The precise relationship between these disorders and esophageal disease or gastroesophageal reflux, as well as their possible involvement in chest pain of undetermined origin, requires further definition. A limitation of esophageal provocation tests is that they may identify the esophagus as the source of pain without determining the specific esophageal disorder that causes the pain. Problems associated with 24-hour pH and pressure monitoring include (a) poor correlation between reflux episodes and heartburn symptoms, (b) the lack of a good functioning swallowing signal, and (c) the huge amount of data that must be analyzed, along with shortcomings in computer-aided analysis. Nevertheless, the various available diagnostic tests can provide important information to the clinician.
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PMID:Critique of the session on diagnostic testing. 159 70

In half of the patients admitted for observation for acute myocardial infarction, this diagnosis is disproved. Gastro-oesophageal reflux and/or disturbances of oesophageal motility are the cause of the thoracic pain resulting in hospitalization in 16-34% of these patients. In 13-59% of the patients with chronic recurrent thoracic pain without demonstrable ischaemic cardiac disease (IHD), oesophageal disease is, similarly, considered to be the cause of the pain. It is not possible to distinguish whether the pain is caused by oesophageal disease or IHD on the basis of the history, but the differential diagnosis is important as patients with pain on account of oesophageal disease have a good prognosis as regards mortality. The physical and mental conditions of the patients may be improved if the correct diagnosis is established and treatment instituted. Methods of examination to demonstrate oesophageal disease are described. On account of the frequency of the condition and the extent of the methods of examination, a programme of investigation is proposed for patients suspected of having thoracic pain due to oesophageal disease.
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PMID:[Acute recurrent chest pain originating in the esophagus. A review]. 159 11

"Corkscrew oesophagus" is characterised on the basis of two case reports and attention is drawn to thoracic pain of oesophageal origin. Corkscrew oesophagus is a radiological diagnosis and is characterised by twisted segments in the distal third of the oesophagus. The condition can sometimes be demonstrated endoscopically and it is due to a basic disturbance in the motility of the oesophagus. Painful conditions in the oesophagus are most frequently caused by gastro-oesophageal reflux or disturbances in motility and the latter is frequently complicated by reflux oesophagitis. Pain of oesophageal origin is frequently a diagnosis by exclusion and requires exclusion of ischaemic heart disease. The initial treatment should be directed to the reflux oesophagitis. The diagnosis and information about the origin of the pain and the benign course of the condition will calm the majority of the patients and remove their fear of a possible fatal heart disease.
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PMID:[Corkscrew esophagus]. 173 62

16 HIV seropositive patients among the 180 treated at the Hospital Muniz and the Hospital Posadas in Buenos Aires between December 1988 and December 1989 were referred to the Hospital Posadas Endoscopy Service for esophageal studies. The 16 patients were prospectively studies by means of fiberoscopy, radiology, biopsies, virology, mycology, and brush cytology. Early treatment is of utmost importance because opportunistic infections may aggravate the general condition, increase immune system effects, and probably permit greater replication of HIV, in addition to producing symptoms. 14 patients were male and 2 female. Ages ranged from 18 to 41 and averaged 32 years. 10 were male homo- or bisexuals and the other 6 were intravenous drug users. 14 of the patients consulted because of specifically esophageal symptoms. 12 reported dysphagia, 8 odynophagia, and 6 retrosternal pain. 9 patients presented various symptoms. 15 of the 16 symptomatic patients had some pathology related to HIV. The remaining case presented a small submucus tumor and gastroesophageal reflux. The symptoms had appeared between 10 days and 1 year prior to study. Symptoms did not provide accurate diagnostic clues. 11 cases of esophageal candidiasis were diagnosed endoscopically by isolated or confluent white plaques. 3 patients classified as grade 1 or 2 on the basis of the intensity and density of plaques had mild symptoms, and 8 classified as grade 3 or 4 had more severe symptoms. 7 of the 11 patients also had oral candidiasis. 4 of 6 patients presenting ulcerative pathology were diagnosed virologically with herpes simplex virus type 2. Herpetic ulcers were single or multiple and were deep with slightly raised edges. No ulcers attributable to cytomegalovirus were diagnosed. 4 of the 11 patients with candidiasis also had ulcers, in 2 cases herpetic. The studies indicated a change in the stage of HIV infection following Centers for Disease Control criteria in 10 cases. AIDS was diagnosed in 7 cases based on esophageal findings. Endoscopic study and the samples obtained guided treatment in the 16 patients. In 1 case a repeat endoscopy led to a change in treatment. It is recommended that endoscopy be performed in all patients with esophageal symptoms. Radiology was relatively ineffective, with 50% of diagnoses in error. Histopathology required multiple biopsies and was less sensitive than endoscopy and cytology. Cytology was highly specific and sensitive.
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PMID:[Esophageal pathology in patients with the AIDS virus. Etiology and diagnosis]. 182 Jun 92

The Bernstein test has been used as a test of oesophageal acid sensitivity for over 30 years but its clinical value has been challenged by the advent of ambulatory pH monitoring. Furthermore, the relation between mucosal acid sensitivity, symptomatic reflux, and abnormal oesophageal acid exposure time is unclear. This study examined the relation between these three parameters in patients referred for pH monitoring with unexplained chest pain or heartburn. Fifty consecutive patients were studied - nine with non-cardiac chest pain and 41 with a history of heartburn. Symptomatic reflux was defined as a greater than or equal to 50% temporal association between pain episodes and reflux events (pH less than 4) during pH monitoring. A positive acid perfusion test (in which the patient's usual symptoms were evoked by acid, though not saline) had a 100% sensitivity, 73% specificity, and 81% accuracy for the detection of symptomatic reflux. All 10 patients with symptomatic reflux during pH monitoring had evidence of mucosal acid sensitivity. A negative acid perfusion test made symptomatic reflux unlikely. However, symptomatic reflux or a positive acid perfusion test, or both, were found in some patients with a normal oesophageal acid exposure time during pH monitoring. Mucosal acid sensitivity, abnormal oesophageal acid exposure time, and symptomatic reflux should be regarded as separate, though related aspects of reflux disease. The Bernstein test is simple, safe, and easily performed. A positive test helps to identify an oesophageal cause of symptoms, particularly in patients in whom other aspects of 'gastro-oesophageal reflux disease' are absent, or who do not have symptoms during pH monitoring.
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PMID:Symptomatic gastro-oesophageal reflux, abnormal oesophageal acid exposure, and mucosal acid sensitivity are three separate, though related, aspects of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease. 186 28

Recurring substernal chest pain is an important clinical problem, causing anxiety for patients and their physicians because of the fear of possible cardiac disease. The differential diagnosis includes coronary artery disease, oesophageal disorders such as acid reflux disease and motility disturbances, musculoskeletal problems, psychological disorders including panic attacks, and a new 'fly in the ointment'--microvascular angina. History alone usually cannot distinguish cardiac from non-cardiac chest pain. After exclusion of significant coronary artery disease, attention must be turned to oesophageal disorders, which may be seen in as many as 50% of these patients. Oesophageal motility disorders, particularly the nutcracker oesophagus, are common, but the relationship between pain and abnormal contraction pressures is not well established. Provocative tests such as edrophonium (Tensilon) and balloon distension help to identify the oesophagus as the source of chest pain but do not direct therapy. Recent studies with ambulatory oesophageal monitoring suggest that gastro-oesophageal reflux may be a more common cause of chest pain than motility disorders. This is an important finding as acid reflux is a treatable problem, while therapies for motility disorders may only worsen reflux disease. The recent observation that oesophageal disorders are frequently associated and interact with psychological disorders such as anxiety, depression, somatization and panic attacks complicates the evaluation and understanding of chest pain. How these various abnormalities may be linked is an unresolved issue. Increased central nervous system stimulation and altered visceral and/or central pain sensitivity could be the common factors. It is hoped that further research into these areas will lead to new understandings of and possible solutions to the complex problem of non-cardiac chest pain.
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PMID:Investigation and management of non-cardiac chest pain. 191 53

Two doses of nizatidine (150 mg bid and 300 mg hs), an H2-receptor antagonist, were compared with placebo in a 12-wk, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, parallel study in 466 patients with endoscopically documented gastroesophageal reflux disease. Antacid tablets were given concomitantly as needed for pain. Compared with placebo, nizatidine 150 mg twice daily was highly effective in rapidly reducing the severity of heartburn, regardless of esophagitis severity at entry. Significantly greater complete mucosal healing of esophagitis occurred after 6 wk of therapy with nizatidine 150 mg bid (vs. nizatidine 300 mg hs or placebo) only in patients with erosive esophagitis [16/68 (24%) vs. 8/65 (12%)] and erosive and ulcerative esophagitis combined [21/99 (21%) vs. 10/94 (11%)]. At wk 12, healing with nizatidine 150 mg bid was also significantly greater than placebo in erosive [19/68 (28%) vs. 9/65 (14%)], ulcerative [10/31 (32%) vs. 3/29 (10%)], and erosive and ulcerative esophagitis combined [29/99 (29%) vs. 12/94 (13%)]. These results show that twice-daily therapy with nizatidine 150 mg is very effective at relieving heartburn, and can also heal erosive and ulcerative esophagitis. Nizatidine 300 mg hs was not effective in healing esophagitis, compared with placebo.
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PMID:Nizatidine versus placebo in gastroesophageal reflux disease: a 12-week, multicenter, randomized, double-blind study. 196 18

Management of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease depends on the importance attached by the physician to symptoms and to risk of complications, ie: stricture, haemorrhage, operation- and drug-hazards. A patient who suffers rarely and during short periods could require dietary and postural recommendations and the use of the following drugs: antacids, alginates, prokinetic agents and/or H2-receptor antagonists. We consider that the rarity of stricture rules out the necessity of any change in management, whether or not erosive oesophagitis is observed at endoscopy. Most patients are treated with these drugs. On the other hand, when symptoms are frequent and occur daily and especially at night and when H2-receptor antagonists fail to relieve the pain, a more potent drug such as omeprazole is to be administered. The same applies to patients running the risk of haemorrhage resulting from anticoagulant coexisting therapy, the later condition requiring the lesions to be healed and relapse prevented. In the long run, the choice between a drug (H2-receptor antagonist or omeprazole) taken daily and surgery can be debated. Even when a stricture is present surgery is no longer necessary due to failure of conservative management. The decision depends on the operation-linked risks relative to the patient's condition and on his or her compliance to daily drug-administration. Respiratory or ENT complications are often difficult to alleviate by H2-receptor antagonists and may need to be treated with omeprazole.
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PMID:[Therapeutic strategy in the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux]. 198 74


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