Gerd, Heartburn & Reflux Disease Information

Anyone suffering from severe and chronic acid reflux heartburn symptoms should see their family physician for a proper diagnosis. The most common problems associated with taking these medications are side affects.

Many times patients will not even inform their physician of their heartburn or acid reflux symptoms. In addition delaying treatment increases the risk of developing a more serious condition. Certain medications like calcium channel blockers used to treat cardiac problems and high cholesterol levels, cause the LES muscle to be less efficient thereby allowing to acid reflux up the esophagus. In addition some anti-depressant medications also cause the LES muscle to become relaxed causing acid reflux.

Today there are several very good acid reflux and heartburn medications that your doctor can prescribe to reduce your symptoms and heal acid reflux damage. H2 blockers are the most commonly prescribed medication for acid reflux. In general this group of medications reduces the amount of acid that the stomach produces thereby reducing the damage done by acid reflux. If you take medications that are required for other serious health conditions you will have to consider alternative methods of treating your heartburn and acid reflux condition. If you have severe heartburn and or acid reflux, surgery is a good alternative. Published result show that this method is very effective in patients that have severe acid reflux heartburn and or cannot take commonly prescribed acid reflux medications.

If you are self diagnosing you heartburn and treating it with over the counter medications you may have hidden risks.

Available acid reflux drugs

Some of the common drugs available for treating acid reflux can be grouped into the following categories:

1) Antacids – These drugs neutralize gastric acid and thereby reduce discomfort. Examples include magnesium hydroxide and aluminum hydroxide. A single dosage of antacids can reduce acid reflux symptoms for up to three hours. Antacids are available both in liquid and tablet form, with liquid antacids being more effective.

2) Histamine (H2) receptor antagonists – Also known as H2 blocking agents, H2 receptor antagonists are more powerful drugs. H2 receptor antagonists can inhibit acid production for almost half a day.

3) Proton pump inhibitors – These drugs are even more powerful than histamine receptor antagonists. Proton pump inhibitors such as Prilosec and Prevacid are used to treat severe acid reflux symptoms such as ulcers. This in turn reduces the chances of acid flowing back into the esophagus. About a fifth of acid reflux patients have problems emptying their stomachs.