Does surgery work for Laryngopharyngeal Reflux (LPR)?

Posted by Bpositive @bpositive, Jun 13, 2017

Since December 13, 2016. My symptoms started with a soar throat, soar inflamed taste buds on the tip of my tongue and inflamed salivary glands on my soft palate. My tongue, throat and soft palate had a painful burning sensation that was on and off. My General practitioner referred me to an Ear Nose throat specialist who referred me to an oral surgeon who referred me to an oral pathologist for burning mouth syndrome. After wasting 3 months of running around with these Dr's and being tested for oral thrush, hsv tests, vitamin deficiency tests, auto immune deficiency tests, cultural bacteria tests all which came back normal. I decided to go for a second opinion with another E.N.T. specialist who performed a camera scope and diagnosed me with acid in my throat. I was put on Dexilant and noticed the pain dissipate almost immediately only problem was I couldn't tolerate the medication. I was then put on Tecta and referred to a G. I. My general Practitioner did some blood work for h pylori and I tested positive. I started to develop tinitus in my left ear. I had a gastroscopy where they found a 2 cm Hiatel Hernial and my lower sphincter was weak. Thats when I was told I have a mild case of gerd, but I don't suffer from any heart burn. I was put on triple dose of antibiotics for h pylori and continued with the Tecta, domperadone and sucrolafate. I'm getting a little relief from the PPI and meds but I still suffer from bitter reflux taste and burning pain in my throat, soft Palate, the tip of my tongue and dry mouth that comes and goes. I'm in the process of having a 24 hr ph level test done. The G. I. I was seeing says my esophagus biopsy tested clean and he doesn't believe what is happening in my oral cavity is related to my gut. He stated in order for acid to travel to the throat it has to travel through the esophagus and the esophagus tested clean. Thus he can't help me anymore. I'm so confused my ENT says I have acid in my throat and the G.I. doesn't agree.

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kbro2010 | @kbro2010 | Feb 2 12:27pm

In reply to @lumberguy007 "Is it done in office? Painful? Did it help out you in the right direction for..." + (show)

It was done at the University of Chicago hospital as an out patient surgery. It what they called it. For me it was super painful. I had a panic attack and almost passed out. I have a deviated septum. So this made it difficult to insert the tube. My throat was sore for the rest of the day and that night.

lumberguy007 | @lumberguy007 | Feb 2 1:01pm

In reply to @kbro2010 "It was done at the University of Chicago hospital as an out patient surgery. It what..." + (show)

Did that help with a diagnosis?

kbro2010 | @kbro2010 | Feb 2 1:40pm

In reply to @sanchopanza "Hi. My problem started about a month ago when I started chugging down a glass of..." + (show)

@sanchopanza

Hi. My problem started about a month ago when I started chugging down a glass of water and suddenly I had a spasm in the area of my pharynx. It scared me, and took several minutes to abate, but no other symptoms. Soon, I found that I could no longer drink orange juice without the same problem, and then ice cream gave me very thick saliva that was difficult to spit out as well as the tightness in my throat. I had had problems with normal heartburn in the past, but a few days of ranitidine (Zantac) and I was OK. I think this was because of my taking ibuprofen on an empty stomach. If the Zantac didn't help, which was seldom, I took Prilosec for 3 days and it was gone. Now, after the spasms, I began burping and having hiccups frequently, which was new to me, so I started on Prilosec 20mg once a day. I also changed my diet to conform with the diet for GERD and I think I'm beginning to get better, but it's taken a lot out of me because I've been on the same diet for a long time and all of a sudden I'm missing crucial nutrients that I ordinarily get. By the way, I"m 69 and have been healthy and disease free for at least 20 years. I want to discontinue the Prilosec because I've only been taking it for a little more than two weeks. I'm wondering if I could switch back to the Zantac 150mg twice a day without experiencing rebound symptoms because I've been on the Prilosec for such a short time. I can see that there are many people here with digestive health problems and I'm hoping someone can steer me in the right direction. My doctor is very good at giving labs and writing prescriptions, but he doesn't seem to do much doctoring, but that was OK, because I haven't had any serious health issues. He just told me " You know you have to see a gastroenterologist". Because of the holiday I haven't been able to schedule an appt. yet and now, with some of the symptoms lessening, I'm hoping there's a chance that I can switch to Zantac, or preferably cimetidine (Tagament) which helped me greatly when I developed an ulcer many years ago, and solve this problem without any intervention. The reason I want to stop taking it is because of the side effects. I've had diarrhea a few times and lots of headaches.I"m also worried about the things that can happen when you have so little stomach acid. I"d appreciate any comments from people who have had experience weaning off Prilosec after short term use, or anyone who has suffered with LPR or laryngopharangeal reflux, or anyone at all. Thanks for listening!!

Jump to this post

I had no issues swallowing and my esophagus was working correctly. They were checking to see if I was a candidate for surgery.

jmedj55 | @jmedj55 | Aug 6 9:04pm

In reply to @cmdw2600 "Has anyone been diagnosed with silent reflux or LPR? This is a condition where there is..." + (show)

I have this as well .. is there any treatment that is safe and effective

jmedj55 | @jmedj55 | Aug 7 8:15am

In reply to @cmdw2600 "Has anyone been diagnosed with silent reflux or LPR? This is a condition where there is..." + (show)

Seems that it is either surgery for fundiplocation or long term ppis. Though both options have many issues…?

cmdw2600 | @cmdw2600 | Aug 8 6:42am

In reply to @mistinguette "Hi, what medical examinations and tests did you do to get the diagnosis? I have undiagnosed..." + (show)

If you haven’t already, please check out Dr. Jamie Koufman’s books and website. A good one to start is The Chronic Cough Enigma (even if you don’t have a cough). Great explanation of LPR and remedies. Best wishes, Cindy

sylvermoon8 | @sylvermoon8 | Aug 18 12:07pm

In reply to @cmdw2600 "I have completed the four day Bravo meter test. An acid monitoring capsule is planted on..." + (show)

I was just told they want to do a Bravo test. Ive been on Pepcid 40mg 2x/day for 5 weeks, upped from 1 x/day…it has done nothing for the burning throat to stomach pain I wake up with, In fact I have more symptoms after increasing Pepcid.
Has anyone had any difficulties with the Bravo test? I’m a bit nervous.

rocket102 | @rocket102 | Aug 18 2:39pm

In reply to @sanchopanza "Hi. My problem started about a month ago when I started chugging down a glass of..." + (show)

@sanchopanza

Jump to this post

I had no issues with the test. My doctor wasn’t sure that I was suffering from Silent Reflux. This test confirmed it. I did not feel it and could eat without issue. It fell out as promised. I’d recommend it! Good luck!

cmdw2600 | @cmdw2600 | Aug 19 7:27am

In reply to @sylvermoon8 "I was just told they want to do a Bravo test. Ive been on Pepcid 40mg..." + (show)

It’s been awhile but I don’t recall having any issue with the Bravo meter test. My ENT is a quirky late middle aged woman. When I met with her for the first time, she had a half empty two liter orange soda on her desk. This didn’t appear very professional but I soon learned the purpose of what turned out to be a prop. She set the bottle on its side as an illustration of what happens with acid when you lie down-it comes up to your throat, especially if you have a hiatal hernia. My Bravo test did show that I do have an acid problem which affects my throat.

I take 20mg of famotadine (Pepcid) before bed most nights, but I really believe in homeopathic methods as well. Elevate the head of your bed as much as you can without sliding down. Also, my integrative medicine doctor recommends:
Zinc carnosine
DGL
Aloe Vera
Soothing tea (I make my own concoction of licorice root, chamomile and marshmallow root-tastes good!)
Alkaline water-can purchase bottles or use alkaline drops
Manuka honey

I find that these natural aids do help how I feel although I have not had another endoscopy since the Bravo test. I do still consume coffee and wine with dinner, but have eliminated carbonated beverages and highly acidic foods.

I also recommend Dr. Jamie Koufman’s website and books.

Best wishes,
Cindy

sylvermoon8 | @sylvermoon8 | Aug 20 10:00am

In reply to @cmdw2600 "It’s been awhile but I don’t recall having any issue with the Bravo meter test. My..." + (show)

Thank you for your advice. I do some of the other things you mentioned. But I will check out Dr Kaufman.

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