CHICAGO — Individuals with gastroesophageal reflux fare better when they see a doctor than when they treat themselves with over-the-counter medications, but even for the majority of those patients, symptoms are not totally resolved, Roger Jones, M.D., said at the annual Digestive Disease Week.
In a multinational survey of 1,908 individuals with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), 81% of those who had never seen a doctor for the condition but who took over-the-counter medications continued to have unresolved symptoms.
That compared with 68% of patients with a formal diagnosis taking a prescription medicine, Dr. Jones, a professor of general practice at the Guy's, King's, and St. Thomas' School of Medicine, London, said in a poster presentation.
The researchers surveyed persons who had previously been identified by a larger telephone survey conducted in the United States and three European countries. Half of the people in the group had been given a formal diagnosis of GERD, and the other half were individuals who reported two or more episodes of heartburn in the week prior to being contacted, but who had never consulted a physician about their symptoms.
Of those without a diagnosis, 78% (721) reported taking over-the-counter medications. About two-thirds (65%) of those who had taken over-the-counter medications said their symptoms were improved since first taking medication. Still, 81% had residual symptoms.
Of those with a diagnosis, 74% (727 patients) had a prescription, and 80% of those had some improvement since first taking their prescribed medication. Eighty-seven percent of 537 patients receiving a proton pump inhibitor either alone or in combination reported improvement. Ninety-one percent of those taking only a proton pump inhibitor reported some improvement. Still, 68% of those taking a prescription drug continued to have residual symptoms.
The investigators had no trouble finding individuals with heartburn for their survey, Dr. Jones noted. Results of previous surveys have suggested that as many as one-third of adults experience reflux symptoms.
Previous studies have noted that the most common reason proton pump inhibitors do not work as well as they might is a lack of full compliance with a daily regimen.