Living with and Managing GERD

GERD is quite a serious condition. Every year more and more people are diagnosed with GERD. This condition has various symptoms and is found to cause pain and great discomfort in patients. There are numerous ways in which the condition can be handled. By properly managing the condition you can make your life easier by reducing the pain and uneasiness. The type of approach to be made depends on the severity of the condition.

Some people have mild symptoms like heartburn. Such patients can manage the condition through simple lifestyle changes. All that is required is altering the diet, cutting out acidic, fatty and spicy foods, giving up smoking etc. In case you don't find any relief from these lifestyle changes you may use antacid medicines. These drugs neutralise the acid content in the stomach and hence provide relief from the discomfort. When you do not find any improvement, you should consult your doctor and seek medical help to handle the problem.

When you are suffering from some severe symptoms like lung problems, an acid suppressing therapeutic trial in combination with histamine antagonists is given to diminish the acid production in the stomach and check that there are no other underlying problems. If you find the treatment effective and no further symptoms are found, this treatment can be continued for a long term relief from GERD.

When you experience further problems and complications after this medication, an endoscopic diagnosis is done to have a closer look at your internal organs. This will show any damage to the oesophagus caused and also lets the physician know of ulcers and inflammation, if present.

If the symptoms do not diminish with treatment you may have to go for some other options. One such option is 24 hour PH testing. Or you can go for additional drugs such as pro-motility drugs. This may help you get relief from the severe symptoms. But in case these fail, the only option available is surgery. Surgery is a highly effective treatment which is found to cause relief in many patients. But like any other surgery, this too has a number of complications and side effects associated with it. Hence before deciding to have surgery, it is necessary that you know all the risks and complications that may arise.

With GERD life may seem quite problematic. You'll need to work to make it easy. Firstly, it is important to avoid eating fatty and spicy foods which increase the acid production. Also avoid foods that may not suit your digestive system. Maintain a proper diet and follow a regular exercise to keep yourself fit. Drinking occasionally may not be that bad but you'll have to quit smoking as smoking often adds to acidic content and increases your symptoms. So, you can live well even when you have GERD provided you learn to live properly.

Acid reflux news on the Web

Noninvasive surgery cures acid reflux (Florida Today)
A new surgical technique offers hope for people who suffer chronic heartburn from gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Ending Acid Reflux (WFTV 9 Orlando)
Chronic severe heartburn can lead to esophageal cancer. Now, patients can get relief from a new procedure. VIDEO: Ending Acid Reflux

Ask Dr. Gott: Mouth ulcers plague teen (The Monterey County Herald)
Dear Dr. Gott: My 18-year-old daughter has suffered with mouth ulcers for years. She has seen two ear-nose-and-throat specialists and a dermatologist, with no results. One of the specialists diagnosed her with acid reflux despite her lack of symptoms. She has had a biopsy, but it was normal.

Noninvasive Surgery Effective for Acid Reflux Disease (MedicineNet.com)
Title: Noninvasive Surgery Effective for Acid Reflux Disease Category: Health News Created: 6/26/2008 2:00:00 AM Last Editorial Review: 6/26/2008

Offline -- only in print (Fort Wayne Journal Gazette)
Here are stories available only in Sunday’s print editions of The Journal Gazette:

Joint Pain Eased By Vitamin D (But See Your Doctor First) (Hartford Courant)
Q. I have been struggling with joint pain and just found out that my vitamin D level is really low. My doctor put me on a megadose of 50,000 IU (international units) each week for eight weeks. Then I will switch to 800 IU daily.

FDA Approves ACIPHEX(R) (rabeprazole Sodium) 20 Mg For Short-Term Treatment Of GERD In Adolescents (Medical News Today)
Eisai Corporation of North America, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tokyo-based Eisai Co., Ltd., announced that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved ACIPHEX (rabeprazole sodium) 20 mg for the short-term (up to eight weeks) treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in adolescents ages 12 and above.

Pfit: Did you know (Pensacola News Journal)
Noninvasive surgery effective for acid reflux disease

AstraZeneca bolstered by Seroquel patent victory (Reuters via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News)
AstraZeneca shares rose nearly 5 percent on Wednesday after the group won a key U.S. patent battle over its second-biggest selling drug, Seroquel, for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

What can be done for mouth ulcers? (Erie Times-News)
Q My 18-year-old daughter has suffered with mouth ulcers for years. She has seen two ear-nose-and-throat specialists and a dermatologist, with no results.