The prevalence of upper respiratory symptoms in a cohort of adults presenting with symptoms of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2016
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Sri Lanka Medical Association
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is the pathological reflux of gastric contents into the oesophagus. The oesophagus and the upper respiratory tract have a common origin from the foregut. There is increasing evidence for multiple associations of GORD with the upper respiratory tract. OBJECTIVES: To study the presence of and association of upper respiratory symptoms (URS) with GORD. METHODS: Seventy adults scoring ≥12.5 on a previously validated GORD symptom score (GORD patients) and 70 healthy controls who had infrequent GORD symptoms or no upper gastro-intestinal complaints completed a pre-tested URS questionnaire on the frequency of 14 URS in 5 categories (laryngeal, nasal, pharyngeal, sinusal and aural). All GORD patients underwent upper gastro-intestinal endoscopy. The calculated URS score was correlated against the GORD symptom score and endoscopy findings. RESULTS: URS scores and individual symptom scores were higher in GORD patients compared to controls (mean ± SE, 4.7 ± 4.0; 1.9 ± 2.3). Individuals with higher GORD symptom scores reported more frequent URS. Pharyngeal symptoms had the highest correlation with the GORD symptom score (r=0.507, p<0.001). The presence of oeso-phagitis did not seem to influence the frequency of reporting URS. CONCLUSION: Upper respiratory symptoms are common in individuals with GORD symptoms though there appears to be no association with oesophageal mucosal damage.
Description
Keywords
Respiratory Tract Diseases, Gastroesophageal Reflux, Prevalence
Citation
The Ceylon Medical Journal. 2016; 61(2): 63–67