Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 2, 2025

Simultaneous Laryngopharyngeal and Conventional Esophageal pH Monitoring
Published on: December 14, 2020
A Multidisciplinary Approach to Infants With GERD-Like Symptoms: A New Paradigm
Mark H Fishbein1, Jessica Kronberg2, Stephanie Alvarado3
1From Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University, Chicago, IL.
Objectives:
Infants with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)-like symptoms have been classically defined as having a wide array of symptoms. In these instances, anti-reflux medications are ineffective and overprescribed. Rather these symptoms are more attributable to dysphagia and unsettledness/colic. To address these conditions at our center, both speech language pathologist (SLP) and/or occupational therapist (OT) have contributed to evaluation. We hypothesized that dysphagia and unsettledness/colic are highly prevalent, yet under recognized in this population.
Methods:
Full-term infants with typical development and under 6 months of age (N = 174) were included. Infants with suspected dysphagia and/or evident colic/unsettledness were evaluated by SLP and OT, respectively.
Results:
GERD-like symptoms were present in 109 infants with attributes of dysphagia in n = 46, unsettledness/colic in n = 37, and combined in n = 26.
Conclusion:
A multidisciplinary approach, including SLP and OT, is recommended for the evaluation of infants with GERD-like symptoms.
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