PREVALENCE AND RISK FACTORS OF GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX DISEASE (GERD) IN ADULT KASHMIRI POPULATION

Abstract

Objective: The study was conducted with the objective of studying the prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and to study various factors associated with it in adult Kashmiri population.Methods: It was a community based prospective cross-sectional observational study conducted by the Department of Medicine and Gastroenterology, GMC Srinagar over a period of 24 mo upon native Kashmiris from urban as well as rural areas as a study group. A total of 2600 subjects above the age of 18 y were studied and the overall prevalence of disease was calculated and also the associated (risk) factors were looked for.Results: The overall prevalence of 20.3% was seen in the study population with female gender being more prone to the development of disease (p<0.001). Other factors of greater significance included body mass index (BMI), smoking, physical activity, intake of spicy foods, posture after meals, dinner to sleep time, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) intake and some underlying ailments like asthma and history of abdominal surgery.Conclusion: The overall prevalence of GERD in Kashmiri community is 20.3% with females being more prone with a definite role of factors like BMI, smoking, physical activity, posture after meals, dinner to sleep time interval, intake of spicy foods, drugs and also the co-morbidities.