GERD
Gastrointestinal/Nutrition · ~8% of blueprint- Pathophysiology
- Incompetent lower esophageal sphincter → retrograde acid reflux → esophageal mucosal injury.
- Signs & Symptoms
- Heartburn (worse lying down/after meals), regurgitation, dysphagia; chronic cough/hoarseness.
- Gold Standard Diagnosis
- No gold standard exists; diagnosis combines symptoms, PPI response, EGD for alarm features, and reflux monitoring.
- First-line Treatment
- Lifestyle changes + 8-week empiric PPI once daily before a meal; PPI preferred over H2RA.
High-Yield Pearl
Alarm features (dysphagia, weight loss, bleeding, anemia) → endoscopy to exclude Barrett’s/cancer.
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Physiology
Sources
Reviewed September 2026- ACG Clinical Guideline for the Diagnosis and Management of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease — American College of Gastroenterology, 2022
- StatPearls: Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) — StatPearls Publishing, 2026
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