Does gastroesophageal reflux scintigraphy correlate with clinical findings in children with chronic cough?

Gastroesophageal reflux (GER), a common problem during childhood, leads to chronic troublesome symptoms including chronic respiratory symptoms. Therefore, timely diagnostic work-up for GER is essential in children when GER is suspected. In this study, we aimed to establish whether scintigraphic parameters have clinical importance in investigating the reflux in children.

A total of 72 children older than 7 years with chronic cough of unknown etiology were enrolled for this study. The scintigraphic procedure was performed by using technetium-99m tin colloid (37-74 MBq). Cough and GER scores were used for children who were positive for GER both before and after GER treatment.

Of 72 children, 65 children with a mean age of 10.3+/-2.3 (7-19) years had GER on gastroesophageal scintigraphy. Median reflux episode number was 7 (1-14). There was a significantly positive correlation between reflux episode number and cough (r = 0.446, P<0.001) and GER score (r = 0.432, P<0.001). The significant decrease was observed in cough (from 3.5+/-1.9 to 1.6+/-1.3) and GER scores (from 4.1+/-2.5 to 1.3+/-1.1) with GER treatment (P<0.001 for each).

Scintigraphy should be used for the detection of GER in children who present with chronic cough. Increasing episode number in gastroesophageal scintigraphy might be a predictor for reflux-related symptom severity.