| | Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) Under normal conditions, when you eat and drink, the muscle at the bottom of your esophagus closes off so food and liquids will remain in your stomach. This muscle is the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). However, GERD occurs chiefly because of the following three reasons: The esophagus's normal defenses are overwhelmed by the acid content of the stomach, the contents of the stomach are too acidic, or the food is not cleared from the esophagus fast enough. Read more here
| Refractory Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (Refractory GERD) The term refractory gastroesophageal reflux disease (refractory GERD) describes those patients who continue to have symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux despite standard treatment with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). Read more here
| Nonerosive Reflux Disease (NERD) For some patients, GERD can cause erosive esophagitis, a condition that causes inflammation, swelling, or irritation of the esophagus. In recent studies, however, it has been found that less than half of GERD patient suffer from esophagitis. The majority of patients actually have what is called nonerosive reflux disease, or NERD. With NERD, patients experience typical GERD symptoms caused by acid reflux, but they do not have visible esophageal injury. Read more here
| Laryngopharyngeal Reflux (LPR) There are two sphincter muscles located in the esophagus: The lower esophageal sphincter (LES) and the upper esophageal sphincter (UES). When the lower esophageal sphincter is not functioning properly, there is a back flow of stomach acid into the esophagus. If this happens two or more times a week, it can be a sign of gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD. As with the lower esophageal sphincter, if the upper esophageal sphincter doesn't function properly, acid that has back flowed into the esophagus is allowed into the throat and voice box. When this happens, it's called Laryngopharyngeal Reflux, or LPR. Read more here
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