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Esophageal Monitor for pH Levels

Many healthy people occasionally have heartburn or acid indigestion. For some people, however, acid reflux is so common or persistent that it becomes a medical problem. Patients who experience acid reflux more than twice a week have a condition called gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD); if their symptoms go untreated, they can eventually develop complications like bleeding or ulceration. Esophageal pH, or acid, monitoring (also called ambulatory acid probe) is one test doctors can use to determine whether you have GERD.

  1. Preparation

    • You'll typically need to refrain from eating, drinking or smoking after midnight before the test. Your doctor might also ask you to avoid certain medications 24 hours before the test, since some drugs can alter the test results. Adrenergic blockers, alcohol, antacids, corticosteroids, anticholinergics or cholinergics, H2 blockers and proton pump inhibitors are all drugs that could potentially interfere with the test. Ask your doctor before discontinuing any medications.

    Function

    • To perform this test, your doctor will run a thin tube up your nose and down into your esophagus; you may gag a little, but any acute discomfort you feel will be brief. You'll wear the acid monitor in place for one to two days while going about your normal activities. During that time, the acid probe will remain connected to a waist- or shoulder-strap device that records the measurements the probe takes in your esophagus. After 24 to 48 hours, you'll return to the doctor's office to have the monitor removed.

    Effects

    • The esophageal pH monitor registers each time acid is regurgitated back into your esophagus; the data it records can help your doctor determine whether you have GERD. If treatments for GERD fail to achieve an improvement, doctors can also use pH monitors to find out why a specific treatment isn't working.

    Benefits

    • Esophageal pH monitoring isn't the only technique available to diagnose GERD; doctors also use imaging procedures like endoscopy and X-ray with contrast material of the upper digestive tract (barium swallow). Esophageal pH monitoring provides a great deal of information, however, and allows doctors to determine how often acid reflux occurs and how severe your condition may be. This information can help the doctor select the most appropriate treatment.

    Considerations

    • Some newer battery-powered acid monitors are disposable. Rather than being removed at the end of the 24 to 48-hour test period, these encapsulated devices are passed in the patient's stool. Capsule monitors offer the patient better comfort since there's no need to keep a nasal catheter in place; unlike the traditional devices, however, they can't be used in the pharynx. When deciding the right treatment for your condition, the best person to consult is your doctor.

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