Do I have relfix disease?

[mjma]

I am a female age 39 in good shape (100 lbs)who eats right and exercises (runs) 4x/week.  I have had chest discomfort, urge to cough, feels hard to breath sometime, all day- everyday for  months. In addition (and maybe unrelated) I have been feeling extremely fatiqued, sleep problems, stomach problems, fontal headache especially when move my eyes, all over feeling of being "sick".  Although some of this had gotten a little better over time, the chest discomfort has not.  I have had chest xray, stress test, eco, CT scan (chest, ab, and pelvic), blood tests, upper GI and all was normal.  I was on Protonix for 1 month and now on Previcid (2 pills/day) for 2 weeks. I have not felt much chest relief if any.  I was very sceptical of the GRED diagnosis but they can't find anything else wrong.  My chest discomfort is not realted to eating a big meal or what I eat and what I would consider "heartburn".  I have experimented with all of that.  It is there all of the time.  It is more difficult to workout and a part of me is still worried something else is going on.  Beside the endoscope, is there any other test I need to rule out a more serious condition?  Could it be reflux even though my chest pain is all the time and not related to eating?!  I am not having touble swallowing and don't have some of the other symptoms. Why isn't the medicine working?  Any advise?

[Kevin Pho, MD]

You have had a pretty comprehsensive evaluation, which would rule out many of the major causes.  A negative echocardiogram and stress test would make heart diseases less likely.

Further testing would indeed include the upper endoscopy.  You can definitively look for GERD with a 24-hr pH study - which can conclusively rule in or out GERD.  Gastroparesis can be also considered with a gastric emptying scan.  

These options can be discussed with your personal physician.

Followup with your personal physician is essential.

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Kevin, M.D.
kevinmd_

[yoshi]

If you dont think you have a reflux problem,why are you taking prevacid?
what is the dosage of your prevacid?

[mjma]

I'm taking one pill (30 mg) in the am and one in the pm.  Protonix did not seem to be working so my dr. wanted me to try Prevacid.  Why don't you think I have reflux/GERD?  My dr. really has always thought I had it, but did all those other tests to be sure nothing else was going on.
mjma

[yoshi]

60 MG a day will reduce your stomach acid.
If you dont have a problem of too much acid,then this reduction will make it hard for your stomach to digest food.
Have you been checked for Hector Pylori bacteria infection?
May be you need to see a specialist

[jono]

This sounds exsactly like what I have been going through for the last year. It is very un-nerving. It is a constant tight feeling/pain in the center just below my ribs and causes tightness and sob in the chest.

I have even gone as far to have my GB removed, but that did nothing to relive the symptoms. Lots of heart tests all ok, and a endoscope , xrays, bloodtests, ct scan and the h.poli tests only a small amount of irritation in the stomach was found. So I have been on Nexium for months to no avail. Now it is sugessted that I have IBS    
and I have been put on anti-spasam medication. Slightly better with this.

I am coming to my own conclusions about this. the tightness in my chest comes on from different possitions I am sitting in. I am kind of thinking the whole thing is stress related but it seems to be a vicious circle as this is the only thing stressing me out. The more stress the more IBS, The more IBS the greater the stress.

I guess I will keep on anoying the doctors about it. But If you have not got the H.Poli test then get it done it is easy and is probably the first place to start.

hope you get to the bottom of it.

J

[yoshi]

IBS should not be related to stress,but stress will cause acid reflux.
will the two of you do me a favor and try 2 things-
chew gum and see if it helps your chest problem,eat an apple every day,make it 'red delicious ' brand.

[mjma]

I chew gum frequently so I don't think that is going to matter either way.  I have not tried the apple idea...are you serious about that?!

If I wanted to be sure it is GERD, do you suggest the PH test or the endoscopy?  I really did not want to do the endoscopy as I would have to go to a specialist out of town and I know it is an uncomfortable test.  Because I have had so many tests to rule out more serious issues (CT scan, stress test etc..) I may just wait and see for awhile and continue my Previcid.  Any other suggestions?

I'm not so sure the chest discomfort is related to my other symptoms. My other symptoms quite frankly sound like depression althought I have no history of that and no event that would initiate that?!

[yoshi]

PREVACID,NEXIUM ETC HAVE SIDE EFFECTS-FATIGUE,CONSTIPATION,BACTERIAL INFECTION ,HEADACHE ETC.
60MG PREVACID FOR A LONG PERIOD COULD GIVE YOU THESE PROBLEMS.

[mjma]

My other problems - fatigue, etc.. started way before I started taking Previcid.  My chest discomfort started months ago. It became worse and worse and I started to develop all the other symptoms.

[yoshi]

certain exercises are considered jarring exercise which loosen the LES causing acid reflux,google 'jarring exercise' and you will see jogging,running,weight lifting are all considered jarring exercise.
I have been on the running machine daily for one hour and 20 minutes on the rowing machine,I notice my night time acid reflux is coming back.

[yoshi]

have you considered 'allergy'??

[pointe3579]

In reference to the upper endoscopy test being uncomfortable, don't be afraid.  I had one done about three months ago for a GERD eval.  I was sedated and slept through the whole thing.  I remember being wheeled into the room and the next thing I knew I was awake in the recovery area with the nurse telling me it was all done.  I hope this helps you to get the courage you need to get a good eval by your doc to figure out what is wrong.

[annec2672]

Hi I too have the same symptom as you. Always having chest discomfort feeling bloated heavy pressured regardless of what I eat.  I have done numerous tests as well like chest xray, chest ct, pelvic exam, egd, and colonoscopy, and blood work.  Only thing came out positive was that I had hpylori bacteria.  I was put on antibiotic regimen twice within 6 months but to no avail.
I took prevacid, nexium, reglan, protonix, and even pepcid but to no avail.  I just want to wish you the best because I could imagine what you are going through.  Now I am even sufferering from anxiety and depression because this chest discomfort symptom has been with me quite a long time almost 2 years now.
Please let me know of anything if you have found something about your symptoms.

[angie78]

I have had stomach problems for 3 years now, it started when i was pregnant and i was told i had heartburn which i thought was wrong because it was so painful, after my baby was born and i was still getting really bad pain i was given tablets for refulx can not remember name of them now, it seemed to calm down after a while and last year although i still had the odd pain with it now and again it was 99% better, well this year it has come back with a vengence i have had a camera down my stomach although that was done last year when the pain had nearly stopped and i have had blood tests etc, i have been on omerprazole and lanzprazole and ranitidine none of which seem to help i also drink bottles of gaviscon liquid and constantly take paracetamol to try to ease the pain which comes on at night after tea and can be there untill way past midnight sometimes it can come last even longer even 2 days, its a pain in my left hand side under my rib cage and in my back on left hand side around shoulder blade i also get heartburn at the top of my stomach and nothing seems to shift the pain which can really get me down.
The doctor has said that this is due to stress which at the start of the year when the pain first started i was going through a very stressful time but i feel alot better now and im taking natural remedies tablets for stress and worry and does not seem to help much either, i find the whole illness depressing and if anything that is the only thing getting me down at present, especially as it affects my sleep so much.
Really hoping someone has simlar symptons to me and can advise me of anything that could help im willing to try anything now just to get my life back, i do not drink and i packed up smoking a year ago so none of these are the cause i also watch what i eat and drink as fizzy pops and certain foods ie cheese are bad, many thanks.

[zenmonkeyman]

This sounds very familiar to me.  A few months back i started with heartburn & reflux, sudden onset, and relentless (every day since).  I am unable to lie down, I sleep propped up.  My family doctor listened to me, prodded my belly, and said "hiatal hernia".  So far that's the only thing that makes sense to me, unfortunately all tests have been inconclusive.  You'd think that since 96% of hiatal hernias are "sliding", they wouldn't rule out the possibility just because the tests were inconclusive at a specific time.  When I wake up in the middle of the night (every night), I eat a small bowl of sugar crisp cereal, it's the only thing that helps (that and the proton pump inhibitors).  After I eat the cereal, my stomach calms down and I can usually sleep again.  But wait, there's more!  A couple of perplexing things:  1)  Swallowing frothy saliva causes painful gas in my stomach which I can no longer burp up normally.  My doctors haven't commented on this, or even acknowledged they've heard the complaint, but it's worse than the reflux itself -- I can't sleep at all on these nights.  2)  I often have this feeling of food stuck in my throat, and repeated swallowing doesn't get it down.  This often follows a late-night snack of something heavy or cheesy.  Tonight, at 3am I woke feeling like my esophagus was full, so I ventured a little water to try to wash it down.  That's when I threw up (a new twist) and was surprised to see 1-2 cups of clear, jelly-like fluid, followed by bile.  After which my research brought me here.  Can anybody relate to this story line?

[angie78]

Well i have been back to the doctors today with my problems and after having and endoscopy and packets and packets of lansprazole and omerprazole my doctor is reffereing me back to the hospital only he seems to think it may be IBS which i was shocked about as i thought this was diarohea or constipation but looking on the net all about it,it seems you dont have to have either of these to have IBS you could just have problems with the smaller intestines and that its self will cause problems very simlar to that of GERD so maybe i have IBS instead, either way i dont care as long as the problem is sorted asap as the pain is so bad, i have been given peppermint oil capsules to releave the wind and bloatedness which is apparently causing the pain, i think it will be at least a month before i get an hospital appointment so i just hope these tablets work and start to ease some of my misery.

Here is a copy of the link i looked IBS up under maybe some of you have simlar symptoms and that is the problem rather than GERD?

www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/irritablecolon.htm

[Amerit]

I have just turned eighteen and i have had this problem for six years since i was twelve, but has got much worse as i have aged. I have read all the other syptoms (symptoms) from other people and have found that my symptons relate very much like them. The pain started suddenly just below my breast bone, and as of being that age i just thought of it as stomach pains. Through time my pain carried on getting worse and it was finally then that i was reffered to doctors. I told them that it wasnt like any other pain, it wasn't stabbing pains, sharp pains, but more like a settling pain just there throughout the whole day and is extremely painful as i had never experienced harsh pains like that before. I don't believe its stress as im only young and the only stress i've come across is exams. I don't suffer from any sort of heart pain or heart burn, but i do avoid foods and drinks like: oranges, coffee, tomatoes, cabbage and citrus foods as i find they irritate my symptoms more. I have become more fatigue and have pain often around the back of my eyes especially when i'm sleeping. I also sleep with my pillow raised as i find the pain unbearable. I have tried tablets from proton, ranitidine and omeraprozale 40mg, but none have helpt much. I have had all possible examinations and tests like blood tests, baruim, x-rays and breath tests etc and nothing has been diagnosed. I have not had an endoscopy as i am young and scared. This year i have experienced symptoms crossing from diorreah and constipation all the time and have read it could be IBS. I really want to find out what my problem is as i want to be put out this misery and am concerned on whether i should have an endoscopy?

[Amerit]

I have just turned eighteen and i have had this problem for six years since i was twelve, but has got much worse as i have aged. I have read all the other syptoms (symptoms) from other people and have found that my symptons relate very much like them. The pain started suddenly just below my breast bone, and as of being that age i just thought of it as stomach pains. Through time my pain carried on getting worse and it was finally then that i was reffered to doctors. I told them that it wasnt like any other pain, it wasn't stabbing pains, sharp pains, but more like a settling pain just there throughout the whole day and is extremely painful as i had never experienced harsh pains like that before. I don't believe its stress as im only young and the only stress i've come across is exams. I don't suffer from any sort of heart pain or heart burn, but i do avoid foods and drinks like: oranges, coffee, tomatoes, cabbage and citrus foods as i find they irritate my symptoms more. I have become more fatigue and have pain often around the back of my eyes especially when i'm sleeping. I also sleep with my pillow raised as i find the pain unbearable. I have tried tablets from proton, ranitidine and omeraprozale 40mg, but none have helpt much. I have had all possible examinations and tests like blood tests, baruim, x-rays and breath tests etc and nothing has been diagnosed. I have not had an endoscopy as i am young and scared. This year i have experienced symptoms crossing from diorreah and constipation all the time and have read it could be IBS. I really want to find out what my problem is as i want to be put out this misery and am concerned on whether i should have an endoscopy?