GERD: A Burning Issue Tuesday, June 23, 2009 6:00 - 6:30 p.m.

(click here to listen to the webcast)

Guests:

Peggy Rose, patient

Michael F. Vaezi, M.D., Ph.D., M.S. (epi)
Director of the Center for Swallowing and Esophageal Disorders
Clinical Director, Division of Gastroenterology
Professor of Medicine

More information on Dr. Michael F. Vaezi here

Listeners are encouraged to email in questions during the broadcast
Email your questions to: patientpower@vanderbilt.edu

About the Webcast
Click HERE to listen to the webcast.

Heartburn, the classic symptom for reflux disease, is very common and thus, a “burning issue” for many.  Many of us take medications to control this chronic disease.  We have all had some experience with reflux when we over indulge with foods that are spicy and acidic.  The annual direct cost for managing reflux disease is about $9 billion dollars in the USA.  It can be benign or cause damage to the lining of the esophagus and even predispose patients to esophageal cancer.  One way we treat this disease is with antacid medications; however, some need higher doses and may even need surgery to fix the main problem, which is the weakness of the valve between the esophagus and the stomach or hiatal hernia.
 
Although heartburn is the most common symptom associated with reflux disease, some patients have atypical symptoms such as chronic cough, hoarseness, laryngitis, sinusitis or throat clearing.  In this group of patients, we often perform endoscopy or ph monitoring to measure how much acid is being refluxed into the esophagus and how best to control it.  Sometimes patients may also be evaluated by ear, nose and throat physicians to make sure there is not damage from reflux in the throat area.  This group of patients typically requires high doses of acid suppression.  At Vanderbilt Center for Esophageal Disorder, Dr. Michael Vaezi and his colleagues have the expertise to evaluate and treat this especially difficult group of patients.   Join Dr. Vaezi and Peggy Rose, a patient who has suffered for 10 years with a chronic cough due to undiagnosed reflux disease, as they share both the clinical and personal challenges faced in diagnosis and treatment of this disease.