Bravo pH test

[Polzovatel]

Hi,

Has anybody had a Bravo 48 hours ph test - I still feel short of breath and steroids don't help - so I am thinking may be its a combination of asthma and reflux?

[Karjade]

I have had reflux for a few weeks and feel breathless especially when I wake in the morning. The symptoms are very similar to asthma. My doctor gave me steroids, antibiotics and omaprazole which did not help much so I am trying to watch what I eat. I have not heard of a pH test - what is it and what is it testing for?

[Polzovatel in reply to Karjade]

Its testing for gastric reflux for - they attach a camera to esophagus and record levels of reflux for 48 hours. How do you know you have reflux and not asthma? I am usually not bad in the morning but feel breathless during the day.

[Karjade in reply to Polzovatel]

I kept burping all the time and had a pain in the centre of my chest and had indigestion. It was different from asthma but i still feel breathless when i wake up after laying down all night. As soon as i get up it goes away so i am assuming it is reflux. I took omaprazole for a few days but it did not really help. My doctor has changed my preventative to Qvar 100 from Seretide which he said seretide had too many effects but i got on okay with it. Probably the cost!

[Polzovatel]

I am also on seretide - 2 puffs x twice a day, whats your breathlessness feels like - I usually feel as I cannot take deep breath

[Karjade]

Yes I feel like this in the morning as if there is a weight on my chest preventing me taking a deep breath. When the reflux was worse I felt breathless walking up the stairs but I am okay with that now. It is just when I have been laying down for a while or when I wake in the morning. I am not wheezing or coughing but it is still horrible feeling breathless. My husband is on Lanzaprazole so I used these for a few days and that really helped. The omaprazole which the doctor prescribed did not help - it just gave me headaches so I stopped them. I would go back to the doctors if it does not clear up xx

[Hidden]

I've had breathing problems resulting from reflux in the past. I thought it was asthma playing up, but inhalers had little effect. But the pattern of breathlessness was atypical for me. My breathing always got worse after eating and actually improved if I exercised. Eventually I got an urgent appointment to see a GP. My own doctor was on holiday so I saw a locum. He noticed from my medical records that I'd previously suffered from gastroparesis and suggested that the problem might be digestion related, particularly given that symptoms had worsened after eating. I got put on lanzoprazole for a month (actually a bit more than that as I had to wean myself off the stuff), but it did the trick.

[Hidden]

If it is digestion related there are things you can do to help. Be careful about what you eat and drink (caffeine, fatty foods and spicy foods can cause problems with reflux - I also have to be careful with tanin). Also, try not to bend or slouch for an hour after eating (both will put additional pressure on the lower oesophageal sphincter muscle and make refluxing more likely), even though it is tempting to do so, and ensure that you leave at least three hours between eating your evening meal and going to bed.

Hope this is of help.

[Polzovatel in reply to Hidden]

Hi,

Thank you for your replies.

I've had asthma for a while but this time it doesn't respond to steroids etc..

What breathlessness pattern did you have - could you not take deep breaths?

I went to a gastro and suggested to him that I can try lanzoprazole but he is insisting on more and more invasive tests...

[Hidden]

It was a feeling of real tightness, of an inability to take a good deep breath of air and a frequent need to sit down and rest - all of which are consistent with my asthma beginning to go out of control. What I now know to be the give away was the timing of these breathing problems. It as unusual for me to have these occurring within half an hour of having a meal, or even a snack.

Another give away was my peak flow metre reading. This was virtually unchanged. If the breathing difficulties had been caused by asthma, there would have been a dip in those readings. Do you have a peak flow metre? If you don't I recommend that you get one. It will help you to get to know your asthma better and to identify whether breathing problems are asthma related or not. You should be able to get one one from your GP who should also tell you how to use it.

[Hidden]

I am also currently under the care of a consultant gastroenterologist, though I was referred to him for a different reason (appalling heartburn, reflux and significant weight loss - I was clinically underweight by the time he saw me). It was having a gastroscopy that eventually identified the cause: I had thrush deep down in my oesophagus, and this had resulted in oesophagitis. Did your gastro suggested gastroscopy to you? If he did, it may well be that he wanted to check your oesophagus and stomach to see if the underlying cause of the problem was there.