Review article: treatment of mild and severe cases of GERD

GERD prevalence continues to rise in contrast to peptic ulcer disease. The spectrum contains reflux esophagitis and so-called 'endoscopy-negative GERD' or 'non-erosive GERD' (NERD) or S-GERD and patients with 'normal' overall 24-h esophageal acidification but with a high 'symptom-index'. The majority of reflux patients will not need endoscopy initially. Prompt referral for endoscopy is indicated only if the patient has atypical symptoms or alarm symptoms such as dysphagia, anemia, weight loss, severe abdominal pain, or pain that does not respond to acid neutralization or suppression, or develops symptoms after the age of 50 years. Antireflux therapy consist of raising the head of the bed, maintaining normal weight, and avoidance of foods and drugs that precipitate symptoms, together with antacids or over-the-counter H(2) receptor antagonists (H(2)RAs). If symptoms persist after these simple measures or if antacids or H(2)RAs are needed quite often, then a more formal first-line treatment should be started. Many experts feel that a stepdown approach instead of a stepup approach is clinically and economically a more appropriate way of installing such first-line therapy. Physicians increasingly consider prescribing a (low- or standard dose) once-a-day proton pump inhibitor (PPI) as firstline therapy. If symptoms recur after 4-week trial or are in sufficiently relieved, then the patient should be referred for endoscopy. Endoscopy may reveal no abnormalities (NERD) or evidence of reflux-induced damage. Treatment of endoscopy-negative reflux disease should be directed towards rapid relief of symptoms and then maintenance of relief using minimum effective therapy. Responses to PPIs are somewhat lower in endoscopy-negative patients compared to esophagitis. Some form of long-term therapy is needed in the majority of patients. 'On demand' PPI therapy to control reflux symptoms is a new and attractive option. The goal of treatment of GERD should be to relieve symptoms and to heal lesions. Symptom severity and much less endoscopic abnormalities, drives the therapy. When symptoms are mild or intermittent and when esophagitis is absent or minimal, standard dose PPI is usually reinstituted. If there is moderate or severe esophagitis or if symptoms are particularly troublesome, then the patient should start again with standard-dose PPI therapy once a day, but not uncommonly a b.i.d. dosage maybe necessary. Once a dose of the acid suppressant that relieves symptoms is found, this dose should be maintained for a period of 3 months. After this time, an attempt should be made to reduce the dose. A plan should be formulated for long-term treatment.