[Influence of age on lower esophageal sphincter pressure]

We studied the effect of aging on lower esophageal sphincter (LES) pressure of 52 normal subjects, 129 patients with Chagas' disease and 63 patients with systemic sclerosis. Three groups were compared: with ages between 10 to 29 years, 30 to 49 years and 50 to 70 years. We used a perfused catheter and the station pull-through (SPT) technique, at end expiratory phase. There was no difference in LES pressure between the three groups in normal subjects (p = 0.72) and patients with systemic sclerosis (p = 0.33). In Chagas' disease the patients with ages between 50 to 70 years had LES pressure (17 +/- 8 mmHg, mean +/- SD) lower (p = 0.03) than patients with ages between 10 to 29 years (22 +/- 9 mmHg). We conclude that in Chagas' disease the patients with ages over 50 years have LES pressure lower than patients with ages under 30 years, what does not happen with normal subjects nor systemic sclerosis patients.