newcomer-just what have i got into...?

[tic-toc]

firstly I must admit iam a total new comer to this strange world of ..Gerd,fundo,nissen, etc,etc, and iam not sure which way to turn for advice, so my questions below may have been asked be for ,many times in the past. So i hope the contributors to this forum will forgive this novice,for any repetition . i have tried to look through the information posted here, but as a novice its a bit confusing, my breif history i hope will enable some one to offer me some comments/advice, I am from England ,but now ive retired to Thailand, at the age of 53, being here should be wonderful, but alas no, due to my medical condition. The alarm bells started to ring when i became awear of stomach pains, along with a soar throat, after having an endoscope I was diagnosed as having chronic gastritis with positive ( + ) Helicobactor Pylori, and the soar throat was said to be chronic laryngitis.I was prescribed the drugs.. OPIREN-ARDINE-KLACID,along with a mouth wash for the Laryngitis. The symptoms disappeared, and life returned to normal. 8 month's later the alarm bell went off again, with more stomach pains,and a soar throat. a second endoscope was done, which revealed the condition of Esophagitis, but no Helicobacter Pylori. The soar throat was diagnosed as an infection. I was prescribed the drugs.. DOMPERDONE-LIBRAX-MIRACID,and a drug for the throat infection, the symptoms again went away, ( not fully the soar throat ) To my dismay some 6 month's later the same dreaded stomach pains returned .along with the by now normal soar throat, i also felt if i had some thing stuck in the back of my throat. again an endoscope was done, and i was diagnosed to have Gastritis, reflux acid, and a Hiatus Hernia, the feeling of having some thing stuck in the back of my throat, was said to be due a type of blister caused by stomach acid burning the throat membrain. I was prescribed the drug NEXIUM,which i have to take for the next two weeks. from the outset of my problem, I have followed the doctors advice, and not drunk alcohlo,coffee,fruit juce, coke, soad, etc, and i have refrained form eating spicy food ( a bit of a problem her in Thailand ) eating late at night,ive also raised my bed one end,. The medical treatment i am getting here in Thailand, is first class, but may be in the translation from Thai to English, i am missing some thing out !, so my questions are .. ( A ) If i have Gerd, why is it, ive " NEVER " had any feeling of a burning sensation, or heart burn ,any where ..?, ( B) if I am taking a drug to reduce stomach acid, why do i still have a constant soar throat, ? ( C ) At the moment i am only taking the drug , NEXIUM , I am not fully clear just how this drug combats my condition of Gastritis..?, ( or is this drug only prescribed to reduce acid ) (D) can any one give me an outline of what having a Hiatus Hernia will mean to me in the future..?, ............ as a new comer , i would be grateful for any advice,comments,or thoughts on my above problem, ...MANY THANKS,.. P.S. Should any one like advice on Thailand/living in Thailand/holidays in Thailand etc, i would be only too pleased to pass on what ive learnt while living here.. TIC TOC .

[Dante]

Originally posted by tic-toc
( A ) If i have Gerd, why is it, ive " NEVER " had any feeling of a burning sensation, or heart burn ,any where ..?

( B) if I am taking a drug to reduce stomach acid, why do i still have a constant soar throat?

( C ) At the moment i am only taking the drug , NEXIUM , I am not fully clear just how this drug combats my condition of Gastritis..?, (or is this drug only prescribed to reduce acid)

( D ) can any one give me an outline of what having a Hiatus Hernia will mean to me in the future ...

Welcome to the party! I can relate to your current medical situation because I've had most of the symtpoms that you describe. Take a look at my profile and you'll see sore throat, lump, throat tightness, hiatal hernia, gastritis etc. I rarely have heartburn as a symptom and to top it all off I'm only 25. I will provide what I have learned, hopefully someone else will chime in and add to it (or correct me :) ).

(A) I never really understood this myself but I've heard the acid may not stay on your esophagus long enough to cause irritation or you may have a less sensitive esophagus due to several factors.

(B) Taking PPIs (drugs like Nexium) only reduce the stomach acid, not get rid of it. The throat is very sensitive to this acid and can be irritated easily. Once you have throat problems due to acid (known as LPR by most) it can take time to heal. It may also take a higher dosage of PPIs to get your symptoms under control, ask your doctor about this.

(C) I believe PPIs help combat gastritis simply by making the stomach less irritated by it's own acid. Going easy on your stomach with a strict GERD diet can also help.

(D) I also have a hiatal hernia and I don't know what it means for the future. About 15% of the population has a sliding hiatal hernia, and most do not have symptoms. The hernia can weaken the LES which results in reflux, but I don't it is known why this happens in some people and not others.

I've always wanted to go to Thailand, maybe one of these days I'll make it. Hope you feel better.

-Dante

[tic-toc]

DANTE, Many thanks for the info, i think its going to be a long run sorting out my condition, ive been told that i may be on the drug ..NEXIUM, for some time , i would be intrested to know how much this drug costs where you are..?, here in Thailand the cost for ..20 x 20 Mg, tablets is .. 19.US Dollars, Thanks,..

[Dante]

I've been told by both my doctors I will need to be on PPIs the rest of my life :( I'm not too happy about it, I don't mind taking a pill or two every day but I worry about the long term side effects. I don't really want to be an omeprazole (Prilosec) guinnea pig. I'm not sure of the exact cost of each pill I take because I have a co-pay. If I didn't have the co-pay, I believe it would be about 3 US dollars per 20mg pill. However, since omeprazole can now be produced generically, the costs will soon go down. Since Nexium is slightly different from Prilosec (made by the same company because their patent ran out), you might benefit from switching. In the end though, it all comes down to whatever makes you feel the best.

[The Pard]

Hi TicToc,

Did you know that Helicobacter is very common in your part of the world?

You can be reinfected by a mate, through kissing, contaminated food and water, sharing
eating utensils etc. It is possible to carry helicobacter and not have symptoms for years.

It is difficult to retest for H pylori because the titre remains present for a long time after treatment. There are also many strains of the
bacteria and only a test for pylori. You may have one of the less troublesome varieties, but it can still be the cause of gastritis.

Here is an article that you may want to print and take to your doctor.

http://www.drmirkin.com/archive/6535.html

The Pard