Dr. Phil Hariram's Health Blog

Keith is a web designer. He spends hours in front of the computer busily designing websites for clients. He played rugby and five a side football. The training and the games he played kept him fit and his weight down. Unfortunately Keith had a nasty accident playing rugby and severely damaged his left knee. Re-constructive [...]

Most of us have had heartburn at some time or other. This may be due to over indulgence, lifestyle or temporary relaxation of the lower esophageal sphincter. Reflux symptoms are very common. A Scandinavian Study showed that 21-40% of adults have heartburn in a six month to a year period. True GERD should have effective [...]

1. Acid reflux is common and increasing in the developed world. A Gallop Poll in USA reported that 44% had symptoms on a monthly basis. GERD is higher in whites and the obese. There is also a higher prevalence in people aged 60-70 years. It is rare in blacks. It is also lower in Eastern [...]

Omeprazole was the first proton pump inhibitor to be introduced for acid suppression. It inhibits the function of the proton pump which is the final pathway in acid secretion. It is inactive in neutral pH but acts specifically in areas of low pH such as at the parietal cells that produce acid. Other proton pump [...]

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a progressive disease of the lung and the most common cause is smoking. It includes diseases such as Emphysema (Pink Puffers) and Chronic Bronchitis (Blue Bloaters). Does acid reflux affect COPD? The Jacksonville Study at the University of Florida was reported in the journal Chest. The Jacksonville study included [...]

These two drugs are H2-receptor antagonists and are used in acid reflux treatment. When first introduced cimetidine and later ranitidine were used so extensively, the potential side effects were reported early. The general conclusion is that this group is relatively safe and unwanted side effects are rare and reversible on withdrawal of the drug. The [...]

In children with reflux symptoms, conservative treatment is very often effective. Reflux in infants is very common and the problem usually settles down by the year one. There are, however, a few children where symptoms persists. If this is associated with failure to thrive, weight loss, restlessness, crying, poor feeding pattern, or anaemia, then intervention [...]

In the mid 1970s, Black et al. electrified the Gastro-enterology world when they introduced the first drug to suppress acid production. Cimetidine was the first H2-receptor antagonist released and was immediately used to treat ulcers. Thanks to this group of drugs and the proton pump inhibitors, surgery is rarely used as an acid reflux treatment. [...]

The antacids generally available over the counter are mainly magnesium hydroxide, magnesium trisilicate and aluminium hydroxide. Magnesium Hydroxide: In the stomach it reacts with the acid hydrochloric acid to form magnesium chloride. There is a risk of alkalosis when taking alkaline substances in high doses but in the case of magnesium, there is no risk [...]

Image via Wikipedia Antacids are often the first line in acid reflux treatment when lifestyle changes have not produced satisfactory relief of symptoms. Antacids, when used as an acid reflux treatment, simply neutralise gastric acid in the stomach and by doing this, raise the pH level towards neutral. Pepsin activity stops when pH is 5 [...]