Patient Education in Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

Patient Education in Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease

Patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease (heart-burn, acid regurgitation)may benefit from an educational program explaining the medical aspects of the disease, self-management strategies and how to deal with health services. We hypothesized that patients having participated in an educational program would experience an improved quality of life when compared to patients who did not take part (controls).

Inclusion Criteria:

• heartburn and acid regurgitation the dominant symptom
• needing relief at least 5 days/ week when symptoms were at their worst
• disease history at least 3 months
• ability to give informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

• current or previous esophagitis stage 2(Savary-Miller) or greater or peptic ulc
• continuous need of proton pump inhibitors or NSAIDs
• wish for surgical treatment
• earlier surgical treatment in the GI-tract
• pregnancy
• alcohol or drug abuse