If you often experience a burning sensation in your chest specially when lying down and shortly after finishing a heavy meal, you might be suffering from reflux esophagitis. Here are things you must know about the condition:
The Cause
Reflux esophagitis simply means – the irritation of the lining of the esophagus due to the backing up of acid from the stomach. This happens when the sphincter of the esophagus and stomach (esophagogastric junction) weakens. This usually results from smoking, too much alcohol consumption and obesity. Eating too much and pregnancy may also result to reflux esophagitis although these causes are less severe than the others. Coughing too hard and some medications are possible causes as well.
Detecting Through Signs and Symptoms
Other than the burning sensation in the chest that is often referred to as heartburn, people suffering from reflux esophagitis also experience frequent burping accompanied by a sour or acidic taste in the mouth. This is caused by the regurgitation of acid from the stomach. Some may also have this retching feeling. Symptoms are worse after a huge meal or after a night of hard partying that usually involved too much alcohol and cigarettes. Reports have also shown that heartburn is most felt at night when lying down. There are instances that asthma attacks and/or sore throat are induced because regurgitation irritates the air passage.
Management and Prevention
Relief from the chest pain is the primary goal in the treatment and management of reflux esophagitis. Medications may be prescribed by your health provider to prevent formation of more severe ulcers. If the condition resulted from long term consumption of alcohol or smoking, lifestyle changes is encouraged. Often, cessation of alcohol consumption and smoking is advised.
People suffering from reflux esophagitis are also advised to take small frequent meals (around 5 to 6) as opposed to just three huge meals per day. This is to avoid too much stretching of the stomach thus preventing stress on the esophagogastric junction. You may be asked to do diet modifications where your meals should be less acidic during active heartburn episodes.
To prevent heartburn when lying down, patients should elevate head part using 2 to 3 pillows to prevent back up of acid to the esophagus by way of gravity. Patients with reflux esophagitis should also consume food slowly and take fluids 30 to 45 minutes after meals to prevent bloating.
