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Tuesday, November 15, 2016

By Richard Hamilton


Heartburn is normally a sign of gastroesophageal reflux disease although it also commonly gives a description of various digestive problems. The condition develops when stomach acids spill from the stomach into your esophagus. Consequently, harsh and burning sensations happen between the regions just below your neck and the ribs. Nevertheless, this condition may be cured through an Acid Reflux surgeon Conway AR.

Normally, when one eats food, this passes through your esophagus into the stomach. Generally, a circle of muscle is normally located at the esophagus base called the sphincter. The muscle performs in a similar way as valves by allowing food only to pass towards the stomach. The muscle ought not to permit the spill back of stomach contents to the esophagus. The sphincter closes soon after the passage of food to prevent stomach juices having high acid concentrations from spilling back.

However, if the sphincter muscle at the lower end of the gullet is not functioning properly, it may allow the stomach juices to flow back thereby burning the lower gullet. As a result, the backflow inflames and irritates the esophagus, and the heartburn may eventually damage the gullet. The treatment for this condition is usually important as it increases the chance of developing esophageal cancer.

Generally, some people are often born with a weak sphincter muscle. However, in other people, the backflow is caused by other factors. Some of this factors are such as eating spicy and fatty foods, tight clothing, drinking alcohol, smoking, vigorous exercises, some medications, and changing the body position like lying down or bending. In other people, they have a condition known as hiatal-hernia where the upper part of their stomach bulges to the chest cavity above the diaphragm. As a result, the phenomenon may cause the development of acid reflux.

Usually, mild and moderate symptoms associated to acid reflux may be handled through diet and lifestyle changes. In addition, prescription medications like antacids could as well aid in the relief of the symptoms. Unfortunately, medicines and lifestyle adjustments may at times fail. Hence, surgery becomes a preferable choice. Surgery is generally recommended to replacing or repairing valves at the esophageal base to prevent backward spillage of stomach contents.

Surgical treatments are usually recommended when there is a serious complication resulting from the condition. For example, acidic backflows can lead to the development of inflammations within the esophagus that causes ulcers as well as bleeding. As a result, scars from tissue damages could lead to constriction of the esophagus that causes a difficulty in swallowing. Nevertheless, surgical treatments are taken as the only remaining option by doctors trying to handle these symptoms relying on less invasive treatments.

The surgical treatment normally ensures that acidic stomach juices are deterred permanently from flowing up into the esophagus. The surgery at the same time eliminates the use of long-term medications, which may lead to other complications.

After the surgical treatment, recovery differs with the type of surgery, although it primarily depends on whether the surgical procedure was laparoscopic or traditional. Generally, the laparoscopic procedure has less pain and recovery is often quicker, but it might not be ideal for all patient with acid reflux.




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