A study published in the Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition found newborns are likely being over treated the majority of the time with interventions, including surgery, for gastroesophageal reflux disease.
Zubair H. Aghai, MD, director of neonatology research at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and senior author, and colleagues compiled the data of 58 infants who were all suspected to have GERD by their physicians based on their symptoms.
Here are three points:
1. Researchers found out only 10 percent of patients actually had GERD after they performed the multichannel intraluminal impedance study, a procedure to test for gastric disease.
2. Treatment for GERD in infants includes either drugs that reduce acid in the stomach or drugs that carry a black box warning for the risk of causing permanent damage to a child's brain which can lead to movement disorders. Surgery to tighten the sphincter at the top of the stomach is a third option.
3. Dr. Aghai suggests physicians who suspect infants of having GERD should use the MII-pH test to confirm the diagnosis before treating with medications or surgery.