Esophagus spasms feel like a heart attack...HELP!

  I was recently diagnosed with GERD and reflux problems.  I understand everything I should be doing to try and alleviate these symptoms and problems.  There is one problem, however, that I don't know what to do about.  Everytime I have a big flare-up from this GERD, my esophagus starts doing spasms that are very painful.  It feels like it happens in my upper esophageal area AND my lower LES area.  It feels like a heart attack and the first time it happened, I actually went to the emergency room thinking that's what it was, but my EKG was normal.    Is there anything I can do to relieve this pain when it hits?  I want to try a heating pad, but i don't want to aggrevate it and make it worst.  Please help!!
  Cathy
_Dear Cathy,
Chest pain secondary to esophageal spasm is commonly confused with cardiac (heart) chest pain. You mentioned that you were familiar with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) but you didn't mention whether you tried any medications for that condition. H2 blockers such as cimetidine (Tagamet), ranitidine (Zantac) or famotidine (Pepcid) can help relieve the pain of GERD and non-cardiac chest pain due to esophageal spasm. Stronger acid suppression with omeperazole (Prilosec) or lansoprazole (Prevacid) may sometimes be required. Other types of medications have been used to relieve the pain of esophageal spasm with variable results. Those include nitroglycerin and nifedipidine (Procardia). Obviously, the medications should be complemented by anti-reflux measures. Anti-reflux measures are lifestyle and dietary modifications, which are important in the management of gastroesophageal reflux. You can ask your doctor for a list of these. Finally, there have been some recent reports using low dose anti-depressant medications in the treatment of non-cardiac chest pain. I hope you find this information helpful. Good luck to you.
This response is being provided for general informational purposes and should not be considered medical advice or consultation. Always check with your personal physician when you have a question pertaining to your health.
If you want to be seen at our institution please call 1-800653-6568, our Referring Physicians' Office and make an appointment to see Dr. Muszkat, one of our experts in Gastroenterology.
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*Keywords: esophageal spasm, chest pain, gastroesophageal reflux, treatment

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