long haul flight with hiatus hernia

[Skelligman]

I’ve had acid reflux for 3 years. Started after I had Covid. It had been coming and going but got worse in November - gastroscopy showed some erosive gastritis and mild duodenal ulceration. Had a bad spell over Christmas and gastroenterologist recommended CT scan which didn’t show anything. I take lansoprazole and lots of gaviscon and more recently wind relief tablets with simeticone.

I’m now in the Caribbean visiting my daughter. Unfortunately I contracted pneumonia over here and had to delay my return home. Whilst I was with the doctor he identified that I had a hiatus hernia which had not been picked up previously. This would explain why my reflux symptoms have got worse in the last couple of weeks. Gnawing pain in the abdomen, bloating, constant burping and pressure around the ribs.

I’m supposed to be flying home on 8th April - it’s an 11 hour flight and I’m really stressing about it. Does anyone have any experience of flying long haul with a hiatus hernia?

[1abc1943]

Exactly the same happened to me I have had reflux for 10 years. Treated with lansoprosole I have had 3 endoscopys before my hiatus hernia was found. I have flown with it and been fine . Hope you are ok

[Skelligman in reply to 1abc1943]

Thanks that’s very helpful

[Badger2024]

sorry to hear you are suffering. Firstly are you taking a high enough dose of the lansoprazole? You shouldn’t be on the standard amount of 30mg unless the doctor wants you to take more. You shouldn’t need so much Gaviscon if you’re medication was working. Eating rich food, getting over-full and drinking alcohol all make symptoms worse. Not surprising it was bad over the Christmas holidays and now that you’re on holiday. Carry on as you are and enjoy yourself however best to spread your meals out so eat less at each meal but eat more often. Make sure that the last thing you eat at night is at least four hours before bed. Lansoprazole should be taken in the morning an hour before food to work properly. When you get back home go and see your doctor. You may need to change to a different PPI. Lansoprazole didn’t work for me. There are better ones now. Especially now that your doctor knows you also have a hiatus hernia. As far as the flight goes you’ll be fine as long as you wear loose clothes. Nothing tight around your waist. I live in Australia and fly to Europe to see my daughter every one or two years and I’ve always been fine. I don’t eat much when I travel and don’t drink any alcohol and I drink a lot of water. I also take a sleeping tablet for the 14 hour sector! Having silent reflux and a hiatus hernia can mask cancers as the symptoms are similar. As well as having regular gastroscopies it’s a good idea to also have colonoscopies at the same time. Have a chat with your doctor about it. Check that the CT scan that you had was not just an abdominal one and also included your bowel. Get regular blood tests to check for low iron and get that treated. It’s all about prevention. Enjoy the rest of your holiday.

[Skelligman in reply to Badger2024]

Thank you for the helpful reply. I was on esomeprazole but had to change to lansoprazole as I’m also taking clopidogrel following a stent last October. I take 30mg lansoprazole an hour before breakfast and another 15mg before evening meal.

Things have been a lot worse thus week I can barely eat anything without it causing pain. I’m wondering if it’s as a result of being prescribed a seretide inhaler as I have just had pneumonia. I believe that the bronchodilator element of this designed to clear the airways can also relax the lower esophaghael sphincter. I’ve stopped taking it in the hope it will help and am going back to local doctor here again today.

I just want to be able to get home safely and see a gastroenterologist to get to the bottom of things

[Badger2024 in reply to Skelligman]

So it sounds like you’re on top of your diagnosis. It really does sound like you have some erosive ulceration. I had that last year when I went off my PPI due to my recent chronic kidney disease diagnosis. It was quite painful. The gastroscopy confirmed it. I then went back on my PPI and had another gastroscopy seven weeks later and it had healed. The fact that you’re on blood thinners and probably have active erosive ulcers is not a good combination and something you absolutely need to see a doctor about sooner rather than later. Make sure that you don’t take any anti inflammatory medication which can trigger bleeding. Even Advil. If you need to take anything for pain take paracetamol (Tylenol). Get your iron stores checked (ferritin) to see if there is any significant blood loss from the ulceration. Also follow the eating and drinking advice from my first post. This is just to reduce pain, not heal you. Perhaps there is something other than Gaviscon that your doctor can prescribe to line your gut for now? Best not to go off any prescribed medicine without checking with your doctor. Please let us know how you go. Take care xx