Quality of life and sleep disturbances in gastroesophageal reflux disease

Abstract

Nighttime heartburn is a symptom that clearly mitigates quality of life and work performance, but it remains a symptom that is commonly ignored. Patients with nighttime heartburn consistently report that these nighttime symptoms disturb them more than their daytime heartburn, and the resultant disturbance in sleep and the impaired daytime performance takes its toll in terms of the quality of daily life in these patients. It is also evident that although there are many causes of sleepiness, nighttime heartburn is indeed associated with disturbed sleep, and in a majority of such patients, sleep disturbances and quality of life can be markedly improved by eliminating the symptoms of nighttime heartburn. © 2008 Humana Press, Totowa, NJ.