24 HOURS PH STUDY

[ALICE__0]

  I AM HAVING A 24HR PH STUDY OF MY ESOPHAGUS.  JUST WHAT DOES IT DETERMINE?  WHAT DOES THE "PH" STAND FOR? WHAT ARE THE RANGES SUCH AS WHAT WOULD A LOW READING MEAN AND WHAT WOULD A HIGH READING MEAN AND WHAT IS THE NORMAL READING?IS THIS A GOOD TEST TO FIND WHAT THE PROBLEM IS?    
Dear Alice,
A 24 hour ambulatory pH monitoring study is a test to determine whether gastroesophageal reflux is present and whether those
reflux episodes can be correlated to symptoms such as chest pain. A thin tube is placed through the nose and gently passed into
the lower esophagus. A special monitor is hooked up to the tube which can measure pH ( to determine how acid the contents
of the esophagus are). Low pH indicates acidity and high pH indicates alkalinity. Some machines will have a button to press to
alert the physician reading the study that you were having symptoms at a particular time. When the tracings are analyzed, the
physician looks for the number of episodes and the amount of time that the pH of  the lower esophagus is below 3. He or she
will also look to see if you were having symptoms at times when you were having episodes of gastroesophageal reflux. 24
hour ambulatory monitoring is currently considered the gold standard to diagnose or confirm a diagnosis of gastroesophageal
reflux disease.
This response is being provided for general informational purposes only 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 would like to be seen at our institution please call 1-800-653-6568, our Referring Physicians' Office and make an
appointment to see Dr. Muszkat, one of our experts in Gastroenterology.
HFHSM.D.-ym
*Keywords: gastroesophageal reflux disease, 24 hour ambulatory pH monitoring