Hiatial Hernia/Symptoms

[AB724]

Hi

I am 160 lbs/5'6/age 23. One month back I had an endoscopy done, doctor said i have a huge hiatal hernia. Which is giving me acid reflux. My biopsy results were fine. He prescribed prevacid. There are few symptoms which i feel have nothing to do with hiatal hernia and might be something else. My body ache's all over (legs,teeth and hands). I can hardly stand for more than 5 minutes. I notice this happens when i have acidity coming out of my mouth or sometimes even when there is no acidity. would reflux cause body ache? I also developed linings under my lips, but few days those linings are not there (usually when i feel much better in terms of health). Its as if there is a link between the lining under my lips and my general health. I constantly feel tired and weak. All I want to do is sleep, after waking up I feel better for few minutes and the same symptoms return. I also feel my vision is decreasing. Specially when i have acidity coming out of my mouth, i have a real hard time with my vision/concentration. I have also noticed i am sensitive to cold. And because of all this i cannot really concentrate on any tasks for a long time. Please help me.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you everyone.

[Kevin Pho, MD]

I am not aware of reflux leading to body ache.  

If the reflux continues despite Prevacid, you can consider changing to another PPI - such as Protonix, Prilosec, or Nexium.    An addition of an H2 blocker (i.e. Pepcid or Zantac), can also be considered.

However, to diagnose the degree of reflux, you may want to consider a 24-hr pH study.  If the reflux continues despite optimal medical treatment, surgical options to repair the hiatal hernia or treat the reflux should be considered.

This option should 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.
http://www.straightfromthedoc.com

[jojoie]

42 year old female, i too have battled all of you symptoms and much more in my digestive system,for me i have found that any part of the system that doesn't work properly throws everything else off.i have been so miserable, thant i was beginning to think it was all in my head.a ct scan showed inflamation (inflammation) in my sigmoid colon,i am going for biopsy soon. but finally i can see the light at the end of this twisted [literally] system. I have seen may doctors in two years, had just about every test possible,don't give up there is hope jojo

[AB724]

I am sorry to hear you have went through it for 2 years. I will try to go for a ct scan and maybe they might find something with me. Thank you for giving me hope and advice. Hope you feel better and get better very soon. Amyn.

[yoshi]

there were some discussion on vagas nerves awhile back.
gas can be in your mouth.face and head and give you headache,have you tried to neutralise gas ??

[AB724]

When you say neutralize gas, do you mean take otc medication such as gas X (simithicone) or something else? In either case, not really. I will look into vagas nerves condition. But can you kindly explain how to go about neutralizing gas? I did while back think its not acid coming out of my mouth but gas. Thank you so much.

[yoshi]

yes,if you have too much stomach acid in your stomach,it creates gas and causes acid reflux,hiatal hernia makes the reflux situation worse,esp at nite when we lye down to sleep.
neutralising gas,one way is to take GAS-X or Extra strength Gas-x,chewing gum which makes your body generate more saliva which contains carbonate and when swallowed,neutralise gas in your stomach.
Baking soda is bicarbonate and some folks drink baking soda mixed in water for the same effect.
Then there is alka selzer but it contains sodium.
I have found when Gas X does not work,alka selzer does??
there is also eating a red delicious apple every day.
But more important is that you have to watch what you eat,if you plan on a big meal with dairy or heavy meat,spice and grease ,chocolate,peppermint,tomato based product,take a nexium or prevacid one hour before meal.
You should also avoid food which makes your body produce more acid such as those mentioned above (soda is also bad,so is caffeine).soda crackers are good.
if you pay attention to what you eat,you will find out what triggers stomach problem,also avoid eating much 3 hours before bed .
also using bricks to raise the top part of your bed may help.

[spearoelo]

I have come across this site after looking for help on the web. I have been having extra heart beats for several years. They actually feel like missed heat beats. Recently they have become worse and after one really bad session,when I thought my heart wouldn't start beating again, I saw my consultant and wore a monitor for a week. Needless to say although they did pick up some there were no really bad ones. However for the past few days they have started again and have changed slightly. As well as the missed beats my heart seems to thud and flutter and beats in my throat. Today it it was bad for about 20 mins and although it is doing it now less frequently I feel very uncomfortable. I have read on this site that some people think it is related to reflux and the vagus nerve. Now I have been on Prevacid for 6 years as I do suffer from GERD and have a hiatus hernia and have often thought there was a connection between irregular heart beat and eating, as mine sometimes came on after a heavy meal but am worried that this is not the case with me as my reflux is being treated. Does anyone here being treated for reflux still have the irregular heart beats. I would add that I watch my diet and dont have anything with caffeine in. I am sorry to go on for so long but am sitting here terrified as the feeling of my heart beating irregularly in my throat is so unpleasant. I am a 56 year old female.
Also I have a blood pressure machine and when I am having these episodes I use it as it shows the beating of the heart and I can actually see that it is missing beats. My one worry on this though is that all the family use it and it always works properly, but when I use it when I am having the symptoms it keeps showing errors and won't take a reading. Does anyone know why this is? Thank you.

[SeanH]

Hello spearoelo =

Yes, I have had these heart skips like you for 10 years now(at least. I was old when I was a teen I had them too but never noticed them). After a Severe bout of kindey stones (oh the pain I tell you!), I had GERD, digestion problems of the most severe kind. I lost 45lbs, and yes my heart felt like it stopped for a moment, even made my breath stop as if something was blocking my passageways, but only for the time that the skip happened.

After finally getting a proper cardiogram or whatever gram it was, done in Korea(yes had a horrible bout of both, vomiting, acid, heart skipping constantly for hours). So I was able to get it on paper as proof to all those who had said, "it's all in your mind...". It turns out to be normal, but a rather uncomfortable thing to have, but at least people believe me now.
Anyhow, so years later I have seen that yes I also feel digestion, I don't know how, but it plays a role somewhere in this. As when I have having a movement in my intestins(;arge int. and on the left side. They pay me a visit to say "hello" lol! And as soon as the movement stops, they stop.

As uncomfortable as they are, I refused the meds to make it more comfortable. I stick to Zantac, as it works for me. The rest of my bowel problems(nothing much can be done for mine), I rely on sparingly using Ativan to relax my system. Against what all my Doctors say, If I didn't have them, my life would be hell. And I make about 30 1mg tablets last me a YEAR. So there goes the addiction theory out the window. I only take them when I really cannot cope.

I also noticed something else you might be interested in. After having this heart skipping so long now, I have also noticed in stressful situations such as being out in winter(our Montreal climate can be severely cold), it will skip like mad from the entense cold/pain. I don't know why, and doctors have no idea why they get worse or less. Mostly tell me all my symptoms are psychological(the fear of them yes! Who wouldn't be when you feel like you are practically dying???), but the symptoms...Milk, eggs, and ANY dairy I avoid like the plague, and when I did that, I gained 50lbs back and have a semi-normal life now. Most times I feel bad is during spring and fall months, can't figure out why. I do know it isn't lactose intolerance, I have been tested. So what it really has to do with dairy and eggs I do not know. But everyone seems to swear by it as well for a lot of these gastro problems.

Anyhow, I tried to post many things that maybe you would want to consider because I have been down this road for over 10 years. And if anything I can post to help someone else, I am glad to do so.

In any case, my hearts been doing these tricks and scaring the hell outta me for so long. Now I just say, "to hell with it, I'm still living/breathing...just ingore it and focus on living a good life."

Sean

[jboy]

All, two things.  Get your iron level checked--especially first poster.  Lack of energy could be related to low iron levels.  Second, get your thyroid level checked...especially poster with the irregular heartbeat.  I have Graves disease (too much thyroid hormones) which they discovered from irregular heart beat and palpitations.  I also have been anemic for years.  Long term anemia can  cause esophogeal webs which can lead to esophogitis.  Now I have terrible GERD, it started last July and I have been on Prevacid for 2 months.  It is slowly getting better but not gone.  I do  not know if it is caused by esophogeal webs as I was also badly anemic again last July, or hiatal hernia, or just plain ulcer.  My gatroendo gave me a three month supply of Prevacid which I take every morning.  I also take Tagmet or Pepcid H2 blockers, and sometimes Mylanta and Tums (but never the same time as a the others.  The problem I have is the iron tablets I am taking for my anemia make my GERD flare up.  In fact my GERD got horrible the day my doc called and told me to take iron again because i was anemic again, and I started iron.  Iron supplementation was never bothered me in the past...started when I was 35 7 years ago, on an off.  Anyway, if my GERD isnt gone in one month, I will likely get an endoscopy to see what the heck is going on in there, but I would like to avoid that.  I have eliminated alcohol, eating 2 hrs before bed, eating and laying down, and cut down to a 1 ounce latte each morning.  I cant seem to give up my coffee but I never have chocolate or soda.  Anyone here have esophogeal webs?  To me, the worst symptoms in  the begining was gas after I ate and feeling like whatever I ate was stuck at the bottom of my esophogus. So I always drink water to try to push it down.  Dont know if that is more hiatial hernia or web. Thanks.

[AB724]

I should be getting the results for those two tests. I had the same problems, I wasn't able to take any supplements (iron,vitamin B's) they tend to give me reflux. What worked for me is fruits and vegetables. I eat a lot of spinach for iron and vitamin B's. I noticed that coffee would give me huge reflux. I had no choice but to give it up. Drinking a lot of hard water throughout the day makes me feel better. I wear loose fitting clothes. Do you have pain on your left shoulder?

Once again, Thank you everyone for your advice. I really appreciate it.

[jboy]

Thanks, interesting that you ask about my shoulder.  Actually the past 2 years have been  the worst years healthwise for me in my entire life.  (And I had graves disease 10 years ago and grave's opthomology requiring 2 weeks of radiation to my eyes 5 years ago--it is an eye problem caused by graves).  So in late January 2004, just a few months after I turned 40, I got a bladder infection.  Got Ciprofloxin to treat it.  Took much longer for this bladder infection to go away than previous ones I had (this time 2 weeks).  Anwyay, I started a new job late Feb and I could not get the desk adjusted...(or so I thought)...My shoulders were killing me, like someone was stabbing a knife into them at times, others a constant dull ache.  And my left elbow hurt badly when I lifted my arm.  Almost two years later, my shoulders still hurt, but not that badly anymore.  My elbow completely recovered after about 8 months.  I will never know what that was...though there are many examples of people who took Ciprofloxin with these types of results.  When I was suffering the most with the shoulder pain, I was prescribed Celebrex...even though there were warnings about the stomach potential complications, I had NEVER had a problem with my stomach, so  I didnt care.  I was also on non-steroidal anti-inflammatory pills 3x a month for endometrious cramps (started the month after I turned 40). So I am wondering if I now have the GERD problem as a result of the NSIs.  I only take Tylenol now for cramps.  Long answer, but yes I have should pain..in both, especially when I type at a computer.  But it is manageable now.  Only last symptom was ears...I had to wear a hat on my head every day and even at night because my head/ears were ALWAYS cold.  But I think that may have been an inner ear infection that wouldnt go away.  Interesting that only JUST got completely better after I started the Prevacid 2 months ago.  I wonder now if the reflux was going into my ears, as other people on this site have mentioned.

[AB724]

I am not sure about webs. But difficulty swallowing,GERD and left shoulder pain are symptoms of hiatal hernia. Only endoscopy would confirm. Why don't you want to go through an endoscopy?

[jboy]

I have heard that sometimes if the endoscopy is not done carefully the doctor can puncture the esophogus and you would have a huge mess on your hands.  Also, the thought of swallowing something and having it pulled back up makes me queasy.  That said, if I am not completely better by next month, I will get it done anyway. I just asked my pharmacist to ask my doc if I can switch my next month prescription to Nexium. I have heard that works better for some people than Prevacid.

I suspect I have a hiatal hernia and not webs.  Reason why is 1) The day I began the stomach problem, I had peppermint tea, and I had smoked 6 cigarettes at my mom's and drank more alcohol than normal.  I dont smoke, only like twice a year when I visit my mom (I live in another state).  I have completely eliminated alcohol but at the time, I was still drinking about 5 drinks a weeks.  At my moms I went over that and had 3 vodkas same day.  Perhaps the combination of stress at being at my moms (I drove her to radiation treatments because her cancer that was in remission for 7 years is back), the peppermint tea, (which i usually dont drink), the the menthol cigarettes and drinking vodka with juice on an empty stomach could have pushed my stomach over the brink.  2) My stomach got better until 2 weeks later I got the call from my doc that I was anemic, started iron and my stomach has not gotten better since. 3) Today when I was washing the car and bending over a lot I had reflux into my mouth (that normally doesnt happen) 4) things feel like they get stuck at the bottom of my esophogus (kind of like above that spincter in a hernia), and I always have to drink water to push it down.  But I am guessing.  I know an endoscopy would identify that.  But I think I am on the treatment already am I not, even if I do have a hiatal hernia?  I am taking 30mg Prevacid each morning...I actually have 2 months left I think.  I was really happy my doc believed me and didnt make me do the endoscopy, then I end up with the same treatment anyway. KNow what I mean?

[AB724]

You are right. I mean why go through an endoscopy when the end treatment will be the same. I had the same issues with my doctor. I told him we know the problem so why bother. He was like "we don't want to find out later on that we are diagnosing the wrong disease. I would still go through it to make sure its hiatal hernia." As for the endoscopy experience. I am sure you know its nothing. I don't even remember them doing the procedure on me.

[jboy]

Thanks, I recently switched to Nexium and feel better, but not 100%. I just feel like, why doesnt the doc test me for H Pylori first, and treat me with antibiotics.  I checked out the risks of endoscopy and they include severe irregular heartbeat, damage to the vagus nerve,  and a puncture 1 in 3000 requiring surgery.  I have graves disease and anemia, and have had a history of heart palpitations, so i really dont want to chance anything that can give me worsening irregular heartbeat.  Anyway, I have an apt a week from tomorrow for the endoscopy, but i dont know if I will do it.  This is the first really bad epiosode of stomach/digestive problems i have had that has lasted long, so if Nexium makes me better, couldnt i just get the endoscopy later next year if it comes back, and in the meantime insist on getting testing for H. Pylori.  They can tell that from a simple blood test.

[reni1]

I just found this site.  Someone had talked about missed beats.  I have had them for about 5 years.  I have for the past 3 years been followed by a cardiologist who did find some arrhythmia, and said, it was normal.  Everyone has arrhythmias sometime in their life, some more than others.  He said, that when I have these episodes that I sensitize myself to them, so each time they occur, it is really noticed.  The worse thing to do is make light of it, because believe me, anxiety kicks in and your in a whole heap of trouble.  I also have GERD.  I do think this plays a role in my heart skips.  I was also diagnosed with Hypothyroidism.  This can cause a lot of problems that I was unaware of. When your thyroid is off, it can cause fatigue, skipped beat, racing of the heart, you name it.  I honestly thought I was losing it.  If your potassium or magnesium is low it can cause of number of cardiac problems as well.  I have worked with physicians for a number of years including open heart surgeons and I have asked question after question.  Another important thing that I was told while performing open heart surgery on a 41 year old man, he had bad teeth and it had turned his mitral valve to mush.  He was their for mitral valve replacement.  I have read everything, had so many workups and have been told this is how you were made, live life, enjoy your family and worrying doesn't make things better only worse.  WORRY IS MY BIGGEST THING OR WHAT IF -  I try to wake up every day and not think (Is my heart going to skip around today) (Is my heart going to do other things).  Sorry so long, maybe this will help someone.

[bryank]

I went in For a hernia operation back in June of 2002. knowing my body, and where there is burning in the groin area, as well as down the right inner leg, I asked the Dr. who operated about the burning, and sharp pains, and his answer was, it maybe caused from Smoking? Well, in april of this year,(2005) iwas told by the pain clinic,  that the nerve is trapped. i had several injections of cordisone, but found pain in my right testicle, and lower back, The Doctor expalined the nerve is connected, and after several injections, I spoke with the Dr. at the pain clinic how the pain has increased, but his answer was, " I'm not dealing with your back" I've been on Morphine for a while, but stop taking it, due to getting sick. After several months, I'm going in for an ultrasuond, my family Dr. has found something wrong with my right testicle, and need to reoperate?
My concerns are, could this have been provented, can they repair the problem? and is this normal?
Thanl You.

[southern64]

I am a 42 year old female with GI issues.....I also have the rapid heartbeat when I am having a stomach flare up....Recently had a Ct scan which showed edema in the sigmoid colon...which indicates inflammation..currently my doc think crohns disease is a possibility. I will probably get endo scoped next week...(once again)...to the person who is concerned about the test.....you won't remember anything...the meds that give you will relax and keep you from remembering anything about the procedure...also it is quick....once the endo scope is inserted...it only takes about five minutes for them to view your upper tract.....good luck...I will kee[ you posted on my outcome.