Med Equipment & Diagnosis
Page 32
TMS
Gastro Reflux Cont.
Fig 1: Lower esophageal sphincter & squamocolumnar junction; B, endoscopic view.
John Hopkins Medicine Gastro and Hepatology
towards the stomach. When relaxation of the LES takes place then the
pressure decreases and a reflux of stomach contents within the lower
esophagus begins to happen. Also, delayed gastric emptying contributes
to reflux by increasing gastric volume and stomach pressure [bloating].
Decreased salivation and buffering from salivary bicarbonate may contribute to impaired clearing of GERD from the esophagus. According to a
study from the Department of Medicine and Gastroenterology, the results
of their study provided evidence for the partial involvement of hydrogen
ions of gastric origin in the regulation of salivary bicarbonate secretion in
duodenal ulcer patients. Therefore, no direct correlation between gastric
acid secretion and salivary bicarbonate; saliva contains all the ions usually present in body fluids, and of these, bicarbonate (hydrogen carbonate) ions play a major role in determining the pH and buffering capacity of
saliva found. The reflux most often consists of HCl and/or gastric or duodenal, is the first part of the small intestine (5-7 m), contents containing
bile and pancreatic juices.
Clinical symptoms and treatment: There are many factors that can
lead to GERD; therefore the indicators for chronic GERD on an endoscope are only a sign of an underlying problem being linked to epigastric
pain, retrosternal burning, odynophagia [painful swallowing], dysphasia
(Continued)