Thank you so much for your response. He looked for an ulcer through the endoscope. I was not given any ulcer test. I really think that they think I am some quack that likes to go the the hospital and dr. to get stuck with needles, drink barium, and take in some radiation rays....yup...that sounds like fun to me :(
What is worse is that now I have lost my insurance for the month so I am stuck suffering becauser no one will see me unless I give them cash upfront. I will have the insurance next month though...if I make it that long.
I will look at the lists, thank you very much for your help.
Hello, Hevyne:
I have had GERT since before it was named. I went through all the same procedures as you until I was in a study to test for a new ulcer treatment. Then, I ate about 5 Tums a day, and just assumed my stomach secreted too much stomach acid. The trial then was testing for a new cause of ulcers caused by a bacteria. The bacteria can bury itself in the lining of your stomach wall and go unseen for years. This trial did not make sense to me , but it was free and I actually received a $100. The trial is now history, because the bacterium that causes ulcers is named Helicobacter pylori. I blew into a ballon and my breath was analyzed, and I was positive for an ulcer. A simple blood test confirmed the ulcer, and I have been taken Prilosec, 20 mg(and several similar medications) for 15 years. The endoscope did not confirmed I had the ulcer, but the blood test did confirm I had an ulcer. This is a wild guess, did your doctor perform an ulcer test on you, or did he just see no ulcer present while looking through the endoscope?
Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland, says there are 25 digestive disorders and many have similar symptoms. The National Institutes of Health in Maryland has provided a website that lists digestive disorders/diseases from A to Z. For example, find GERD in the list and click, and a webpage just for GERD appears, Pages for each disorder may have from 5 to 10 separate listings within the page. Each page gives more information than I have ever seen. Maybe from your past and present symptoms, you can find which individual disorder you have. The list is extensive, so choose which disorders you wish to check daily and go until you finish the list.
What was puzzling about Helicobacher pylori, you can have an ulcer caused by H.pylori and not know it because you do not see ulcerative tissue through an endoscope. Perhaps after your read the A to Z list, you may learn something new about your condition so you can investigate whether your doctors missed something.
For what it's worth, an Australian doctor tried to convince his mates that a bacteria was the cause of ulcers. He was laughed at and criticised until he drank a container of H.pylori bacteria and developed an ulcer caused by the bacteria.
I hope you find the causes of your stomach pain and nausea.
Harrald