May 29 2008
How GERD is different for Seniors
What is GERD?
GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) is another name for acid reflux disease, which is where you have symptoms of heartburn for more than two days a week for over three months. This acid that is normally in the stomach is the same acidity as battery acid and is meant to be kept in the stomach to break down food and not in the esophagus. When stomach acid rises up into the esophagus it will begin to breakdown the lining and can cause trouble later on.GERD is an ongoing chronic condition and while it isn’t very serious as a singular illness it may lead to more serious conditions over time. It is estimated that over 19 million people have GERD, or acid reflux disease, and make over 4.6 million visits to a doctor or clinic over the symptoms of the disease.
What you can do
Even mild symptoms can wear down the lining of your esophagus and cause damage to your system. Sometimes those over the counter remedies won’t work, sometimes they will. Even when they do work you will need to keep a journal on what your symptoms were, how long they lasted, and what you ate beforehand. This journal helps the doctor make a more accurate diagnosis and show him what may trigger your responses. Also make sure that you don’t lie down after eating as this may help the acid back up in to the esophagus and throat.
Different symptoms for different ages?
According to the Journal of American Geriatric Society, a study of 840 people with chronic GERD or acid reflux disease was researched according to the patients’ age. The four age groups were 18-49 years of age, 50-69 years of age, 70-84 years of age, and 85 and older. All had signs of esophagitis which is the wearing of the esophagus lining as described above. The two oldest age brackets appeared to have fewer of the more typical GERD symptoms than the younger set. Instead of the heartburn and backup of acid, the older group tended to have a loss of appetite, vomiting, and difficulty swallowing. Weight loss was a symptom in the older group set, and wasn’t a factor in the younger group set. The degree of esophagus degeneration was higher in the older age bracket, but they had milder symptoms than the younger set. This study is leading the way to treating GERD differently depending on the patient’s age and not a broad spectrum treatment just for the diagnosis.
This is something that affects everyone in my family.