Clinical Manifestations and Role of Proton Pump Inhibitors in the Management of Laryngopharyngeal Reflux

Abstract

Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) refers to the backflow of stomach contents into the throat that is into the hypopharynx. LPR is different from classical Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) in many ways. Proton pump inhibitors have become the treatment of choice even though conflicting results exists in their response. Treatment requires acid suppression to be as complete as possible and treatment failure is not uncommon. In this article we present here our prospective study of 50 patients diagnosed as a case of LPR on the basis of reflux finding score and reflux symptom index. We tried to evaluate the role of PPI in LPR management by observing the effect of PPI on reflux finding score (RFS) and reflux symptom index (RFI) during the follow up period of 16 weeks. © 2011 Association of Otolaryngologists of India.