hiatus hernia with oesophigitis

hello,I am new on here.my problems seem trivial to most of you.i wanted to find a forum about oesophageal problems,so I hope it is alright to post on here. I had previously been diagnosed with acute coronary syndrome and unstable angina,however when i had the most excruiating pain upper abdomen and couldnt eat or drink,was dx with congenital shortening of the oesophagus,hiatal hernia and oesophigitus. it is an ongoing problem,i get a lot of blood coming up and acid . have been advised to have a menometry test ? . keep getting it,the pain is horrendous and lasts about a week or so,when i get it bad. . i know i should try and get this sorted,but 2nd endoscopy was unpleasant. apologies if i am on the wrong forum,compared to others,any advice would be appreciated.thankyou.

[chrisrob]

Hi.

Heart pains and acid reflux pains are very similar. (My father died of a heart attack thinking it was just acid reflux.)

The doctors need to investigate your condition to see what damage may have been caused to your oesophagus and to prevent further damage.

The blood may just be from oesophagitis. Did the endoscopist take biopsies to check for signs of Barrett's oesophagus. (Although very small, it does carry a slightly increased risk of progression to oesophageal cancer.)

24 hr manometry is a standard check to monitor your acid production.

On a different forum site, I recorded my experience of it as it happened to me in 2007. That account may be read here: barrettscampaign.org.uk/for... - the second posting down.

You should have been prescribed a PPI drug (omeprazole, lansoprazole, pantoprazole, ...) which should reduce the acid and permit your oesophagitis to heal.

Hopefully you should see improvements soon. But please ask if you have any questions or concerns. We are here to help.if we can.

Chris

[medway]

I was diagnosed with a hiatal hernia many years ago. A couple of years ago after a endoscopy I was informed I had a GIST which is a rare 'hanging lump' from the upper stomach wall. I used to get occasional vomitting bleeds over many years because of ulceration of the GIST and it was many years before it became apparent what the cause was. So blood may be from a GIST but of course your medical staff should know. Ask them if its a bleeding GIST. Its important to ask this question because...........My hanging GIST when removed had cancer cells at the base so its important to remove it asap if it is this prognosis. GISTS are very rare but usually occur at the oesophigal junction and can cause reflux and acid attack. Unfortunately because they occur at the oesophigal junction I had to have part of my stomach and oesophagus removed and replaced with 10cm of small bowel (search Merendino interposition. I am a volunteer on here for the rare Merendino Interposition - contact 'head office' for contact details.)

An endoscopy is not nice especially if they need to look up at the oesophical junction as they did with me. They need to blow up the stomach to create space for the camera instrument to turn and look up. Sedation for me every time even though my first endoscopy was just uncomfortable. Whether they blow the stomach up and to what degree can create pain.

What is important is that you pursue the reasons for your problem before it deteriorates and you have to have a major op.

[Hidden]

You are most welcome! Do not be out off by the fact that most of us have had problems on the serious side. We are all keen for people to get their problems sorted out at early stages! And rejoice when things turn out to be simpler than we might fear!

If you have an endoscopy, I do recommend you ask for a sedative. It does mean that you will have to be accompanied home, but it saves a lot of potential discomfort.

Bleeding is not normal, and the medical team has to find out where it is coming from so that it can be treated.

Reflux can be very painful, partly because the cells of the oesophagus lining are not designed to cope with the really strong acid that is present in the stomach as part of the natural digestion system. There is a valve between the oesophagus and the stomach, called the lower oesophageal sphincter, that is part of the diaphragm muscle system, and should normally stop the acid splashing up. But if you have a hiatus hernia part of your stomach will be above the diaphragm, and it is not surprising that you get this sort of trouble. Oesophagitis is a general term meaning irritation of the oesophagus.

Try things like gaviscon, which you can buy over the counter, for temporary relief. It creates a protective raft for a few hours and won't do you any harm. But do persist with the medical team to get things sorted out because it can be a very unpleasant and painful experience which makes you feel absolutely dreadful.

[Hidden]

thankyou very much for helping me with this . I was given omazoprole,after I was dx 3 years ago. I had been taken into accident and emergency because of swallowing problems,and severe upper abdominal pain. admitted as inpatient,and had endoscopy. was told oesophigas was shortened and it was congenital,also dx with hiatus hernia. I couldnt eat anything and kept been sick,by this time was taking omazaprole. I have ehlerdanlos which is a congenital condition. was discharged after 5 days from hospital,the omazoprole seemed to increase angina and caused palpitations,so i take gaviscon. had another endoscopy at another hospital,which said i had blood oozing from ogj. the report said about rpokinetic agent and consider ph manometry if symptoms persist. it sais stomach normal,and duodenum,with hiatus hernia sliding at a,cardia. I know with the trouble I am having,should get it sorted,dont like the sound of the manometry. i know i must sound a proper wuss,compared to you good people and what you have had to endure. it scares me ,so i must get a grip and go to the doctor.i was given number at the hospital,so i might ring them. thankyou,once again.

[Hidden]

There are alternatives to omeprazole which are also proton pump inhibitors that switch off the stomach acid production (eg lansoprazole) but I have no idea whether this would make any difference to your situation.

I think that these procedures can cause anxiety in the best of us. Sometimes it is the discomfort of the procedure itself; sometimes a worry about what extra problems any diagnosis might bring in to your life. It does sound as if the Ehlers–Danlos syndrome will bring some extra complications, and that might mean making sure that you can see a specialist if they are available?

[chrisrob]

As Alan says, there are many PPIs.

Although much research has shown they are all as effective as each other, patient tolerance of them appears to differ. I found I could tolerate pantoprazole better than omeprazole. However, on moving, my new doctor said they were all the same and omeprazole was cheaper so switched me back to that and increased the dosage when it wasn't working too well. (Wish I'd known then what I know now.)

Unfortunately, I find sedation does not work for me - even when they have given me a double dose. So I try and be brave and keep calm, still and relaxed. Then I think I shouold have tried sedation again. But, like the pain of childbirth (I'm told) it is soon forgotten about.