Three attacks of GORD in last week,lungs,ears and chest very painful.

[Minniemouse22]

HI all,despite being on Lansoprazole 30mg twice a day I have had 3 bouts of acid reflux this last week. I have no warning signs of an attack and wake choking with acid which invariably seems to be aspirated into my lungs. My throat and ears become extremely painful and my chest burns so badly that my skin becomes very hot to the touch.I have raised my bed,never eat after 5 pm and don't drink or smoke.

The endoscope showed Barretts but the biopsies showed no dysplasia ( although I didn't receive a copy of this and so have to trust to my GP who seemed more than confused as she read the results to this and the colonoscopy which was done at the same time)

I do understand that the PPI's might take time to work but have been on them over a month now and in view of the recent attacks wondered if I should make an appt to see my GP about this?

To be honest I've had no information regarding BO other than the leaflet they handed me. Having heard nothing from the Gastroenterologist I presume there is no follow up other than a rescope in two years. My GP has just prescribed me the aforementioned meds ( with instructions to cut down to one a day after 8 wks) and offered no advice either.

In the past I have vomited old blood whilst having an attack of GORDs but again both Drs seem to be disinterested in these symptoms.

Any advice would be really appreciated. After last nights attack I am finding breathing in to be painful despite the use of an inhaler. My lungs sound "wet" and I am very wheezy too plus my ears are still painful and it hurts to even sip water.

Thank you all in advance.

[Magpuss]

I wonder if there's any possibility of it being bile reflux rather than acid. Ppi's usually work well with acid reflux but they're no good for bile. Gaviscon works for both but you'd need to see your doctor before trying it as - if I remember right, you aren't supposed to use any kind of antacid while you're taking ppi's. I hope you find a solution, it's an awful problem to have and it won't do your lungs any good at all. I've experienced the same problem twice and the burning and choking is really quite frightening. As I'm not taking ppi's I always keep a bottle of Gaviscon by my bed now - 'just in case'. Good luck.

[Hidden in reply to Magpuss]

Regarding taking Lansoprazol and gaviscon, I am fortunate enough to have in the family a pharmacist and he advised me that you can take both but after lansoprazol you must have at least a 2 hour before taking gaviscon or it will strip away the lansoprazol.

[Magpuss in reply to Hidden]

That's good to know, thank you.

[Minniemouse22 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you both for taking time out to reply. I also keep Gaviscon by my bed and as I take the second dose of PPI at about 5pm I don't think taking this can harm the effects of the Lansoprazole.

I never considered the fact it could be bile and not acid ( or a combo of both) but it actually makes sense. When I get an attack of this the taste is horrendous,extremely bitter with an almost acetone taste to it. I also cough a great deal of yellowish stuff up . The harm it seems to be doing to my lungs is awful...days of painful and wheezy breathing plus bubbly sounds ..and the pain in my ears and throat is dreadful too.

I wonder if any kind person can advise me if I should bother to go back to my uninterested GP or whether I should just continue the PPIs to see if they work at some point?

To be honest I am a little worried about the damage done to my lungs and voice box ..after an attack I am extremely hoarse.

According to the endoscope I also have a hiatal hernia which I can sometimes feel .

The hospital were very quick in arranging an appt but have been less than helpful since. The endoscopist didn't bother to explain anything preferring to just get the nurse to hand me a leaflet on BO which seems fairly generic.

I am scheduled for another endoscope in two years and another colonoscopy in one as they found dyspasia in two polyps but apart from that I don't think I will see the referring consultant again and as I have written my GP seems a little unsure about almost everything. She didn't seem able to interpret the scope results very well ( it was an over the phone consult ) and needed prompting by me to tell me anything.

Sorry this is so long but there seems so little medical advice and as I say the attacks of whatever it is don't seem to be getting any better.

Thank you all in advance

[kiddy]

Hi I understand the feeling. I have had it the last week even though i take Lansprazole twice daily and gaviscon before bed. Do you sleep propped up? Eat early and cut down tea/coffee before bed. Ask the dr for an inhaler it causes like an asthma attack. I feel week and wheezy the next day. Keep on the tablets. Go back and ask to be referred to the hospital for further tests if it carries on.

Good luck

Debbie

[Minniemouse22 in reply to kiddy]

Hi Kiddy

Yes,I sleep propped up and never eat after 5pm. I had to ask the GP for an inhaler ( she seemed at a loss as to why I would want one of these ! Obviously the idea of asthma never occurred to her)

Will keep on the tablets and see how it goes. Thank you for replying.

[Judipat]

Hi,

Firstly, can you see another doctor, or change your doctors? It is completely unacceptable to be fobbed off by a gp..... makes me so angry.

Do you know the name of the consultant that did your endoscopy? You could always try and contact them. Get their name, ring their secretary and say you need to speak to them urgently. I find if you don't make a nuisance of yourself, you don't get anywhere.

I have GERD/GERD and a hiatus hernia and take omeprazol. A few months ago I had a flare where I started having attacks daily. GP sent me for another endoscopy which just confirmed what I already knew except two small polyp like things....Anyway, he took a biopsy which was all clear.......thank God.

He told me to double up on my omeprozol and use gaviscon advance until late I was over the flare, which I am now thankfully.

Hope this helps

[Minniemouse22 in reply to Judipat]

Hi Judipat

My GP ,like so many lately,seems completely disinterested although to be fair she did refer me quickly initially. I live in a fairly small town with few GPs most of whom have a worse name than my own. I do know the name of the endoscopist but again he seemed less than forthcoming when he actually spoke to me,preferring to just hand me a leaflet about the condition than to take the time to talk. I do appreciate these people are busy but frankly we are talking about conditions that cause many misery.

I had both scopes on 1st July so suppose I am up to date with them all. I am currently on the double dose of lansoprazole but am due to go down to one a day at the end of the month...although I think I may well go back to the GP to discuss this with her.

I also have Gaviscon by the bed although to be honest not sure if this helps or not. My symptoms seem to be silent,the first I ever know about an attack is waking up choking on bitter and burning tasting stuff. Its been a couple of days since the last attack but my mouth still tastes so bitter and my chest still hurts badly with wheeziness too.

Given that this can cause problems in the lungs does anyone know when this should be treated and not left ? I currently just wait for the "wetness" to go away but after reading some online stuff think maybe it should be treated via antibiotics instead. Its the lack of such info that causes me confusion. I don't want to waste the Drs time but saying that I also don't want to damage my lungs either when I should have perhaps had treatment for the aspirations.

Thank you for replying.

[louncolcol]

Hi there , I get this horrible acid reflux everynight and i am fed up and shatterd. When i am having a bad attack through the night i come downstair have some warm fresh lemon juice with honey ( which is very soothing on the throat) or i have some acv or bicarbonate soda which tastes disgusting but seems to help the acid go away and 20m ins ater i can go back to sleep.

I have stopped smoking but i still get the reflux so i might just start again cause i use to enjoy the odd cigrette. I have raised , changed diet had an endscopy where they said nothing serious there. I have tried all the PPis - like you i get extremley hot skin and some times i start sweating and choking. Hope you can get some relef soon - i know where your coming from as i am so tierd every day at work.

[Minniemouse22 in reply to louncolcol]

Hi and thanks for replying. I'm sorry that you too have this awful condition. I do have apple cider vinegar but hadn't thought of using this due to it being very acidic....plus it reacts really badly with my gums.

The hot skin thing is awful..I can feel the burning through my chest and neck,even up to my face and ears..its so miserable.

I eat as best I can,avoiding any foods I think may trigger this but tbh I think its just a question of the reflux happening rather than anything in particular causing it.

I have blackcurrent throat sweets by my bed and suck these which sometimes offers relief at least from the choking sensation that makes you so panicky.

Thank you for taking the time to reply.

[louncolcol]

Hi thanku for replying - not tried the sweet idea altough i do have some chewing gum by my bed as sometimes that helps. Other nights i have to get up out of bed often silly o clock and make a warm water honey and lemon drink i wait for half an hour then go back to bed. im up for work 5 days a week though and i often feel shattered.

They say lemon is acidic too but it neutralizes the stomach acid. Im sure the ACV is the same My stomach is very noisey after i have these.

The acid has started eroding my tooth enamel i have some special toothpaste from the dentist to protect the enamel a little.

Good luck in finding some soloutions thanks again

[Steve399]

Sounds like silent reflux might be causing your problems. It's where acid refluxes beyond the esophagus into the throat, voice box, lungs, sinuses, nose, mouth, and ears. You might need to see an otolaryngologist or laryngologist to make this determination. This article has more about silent reflux. howtotreatheartburn.com/sil...

[Minniemouse22]

Thank you Steve399 for your reply and useful link. I agree I think I have silent reflux because its mainly my throat,ears lungs etc that feels the immense pain during an attack of this. I was dxed with Barrett's via an endoscope in July. I mentioned to my GP how my lungs hurt and how my throat and ears were so painful afterwards but got no response . I am on PPIs so maybe this will help .

Again,thanks.

[Minniemouse22]

I am so sorry to keep posting but wonder if anyone here has had similar symptoms...on Friday last was standing in my garden when the whole place started to sway. I quickly sat down and actually didn't give it much thought as it stopped as quickly as it started,but on Saturday night I stood up and the same feeling happened only this time far worse. I felt both exteme dizziness,sick and the entire room began to spin. I also had spikes in temperature and was very thirsty. I managed to get to bed,put on a large fan and slowly it went but frankly has frightened me somewhat as I live alone. I wondered if anyone had either similar symptoms and whether this could be due to the meds or whether to another (new) problem. At the same time as the endoscope I had a colonoscopy which has caused diarrhoea since. I don't think I'm particulary dehydrated as I try and drink a lot to compensate. Again my GP seems disinterested in the diarrhoea and so am trying to join the dots myself rather than go through the ardous procedure of trying to get an appt and then trying to get her to listen.Her only suggestion was to take Immodium ( like I hadn't already thought of that!) and tbh I'm not sure if this is the answer..kind of better out than in...