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) Feeling the burn
Indeed, the uptick of diagnoses in kids and babies is “really scary," says Seattle physician Tom Vaughan, an expert on acid reflux and professor at the University of Washington. Two decades ago, it was almost unheard of. Now the use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), the strongest acid-blocking drugs, for infants like Cooper—who might once have been dismissed as “colicky"—has soared by 750 per cent in the U.S. in the past decade; a range of reflux drugs have been approved for use in kids under age 11. This year, a lime-flavoured, “kid's-strength" version of the GERD prescription drug Nexium will hit the market. “More and more kids are being treated with PPIs and getting anti-reflux surgery," says Dr. Douglas Corley of Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Oakland, Calif. “And no one has any idea what the long-term effects are."Unfortunately, ignoring the symptoms—which for kids can include coughing and tummy aches—has its perils too, notes Gail Attara, executive director of the Canadian Society of Intestinal Research. More>>
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) Guidelines Bypass Endoscopic Cancer Screening for Chronic GERD
Recommendation of antireflux surgery for patients with an esophageal GERD syndrome responsive to acid suppressive therapy, but who cannot tolerate therapy. Empirical trial of twice-daily PPI therapy for patients with suspected reflux chest pain syndrome after carefully considering cardiac causes.The only other supported recommendations with grade B, fair evidence to support improved outcomes, included:
Weight loss for overweight or obese patients with esophageal GERD syndromes. Lifestyle modification including elevation of the head of the bed for selected patients, avoiding late meals and specific foods or activities tailored to the circumstances of the patient. Twice-daily PPI therapy for esophageal syndrome patients with an inadequate response to once-daily therapy. More>>
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) Nurses key players in bringing new leading-edge technology to Loyola
The therapy is a minimally invasive way to treat Barrett's oesophagus, a pre-cancerous condition largely caused by acid reflux disease. If untreated, the condition could lead to esophageal cancer, the fastest-growing cancer in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society.'Cryospray ablation uses super-cold liquid nitrogen to permanently destroy the pre-cancerous tissue in the oesophagus,' Heicher said. 'After treatment, the pre-cancerous tissue eventually sloughs off and is replaced with normal, healthy tissue.'
In this new treatment, the medical team inserts a catheter through an endoscope and sprays liquid nitrogen that's cooled to minus 270 degrees Fahrenheit onto the pre-cancerous tissue in the oesophagus. The tissue is frozen for a few seconds, allowed to thaw and then refrozen. More>>