Acid Reflux

Five Ways to Treat Constant Heartburn Symptoms

Constant heartburn attacks affect your lifestyle. Just imagine what it would be like to stop in the middle of a task because a burning sensation suddenly creeps up to your chestbone, to your esophagus, to your throat, and sometimes even to your mouth. The pain can strike anytime! Even while you sleep. So what can be done to avoid your heartburn symptoms taking over your entire life?

There are many cures to constant heartburn, varying from surgical procedures to medicines. Here are some of the treatment options to consider.

1. Laparoscopic Nissen Fundoplication is a common type of heartburn surgery which involves tightening the walls of the esophagus and adding pressure to the lower esophagus muscle in order to prevent stomach contents from reaching the throat. Another method focuses on tightening the esophagus valve to keep acids from burning the esophageal lining.

2. Intraluminal endoscopic surgery is about using an optical, tubular instrument which is inserted inside the part of the patient’s body to let the doctor get a better view of it. This procedure is much faster and has a shorter recovery rate, which is why many patients want this kind of surgery.

3. Antiacids are taken to neutralize the acids and promote the body’s defenses by helping increase the production of micous and bicarbonate. These medicines are aimed to relieve mild symptoms of heartburn, and are bought without the doctor’s prescription.

4. Histamine blockers are made to block the actions of histamine, a chemical which helps promote the production of stomach acids. They are for the relief of frequent cases of heartburn, but you have to wait for thirty to ninety minutes before these drugs could take effect. Then, the effect will only last for six to twenty-four hours. For patients with more serious cases of heartburn, they have to take two dosages a day.

5. Proton pump inhibitors reduce the acids in the stomach by reacting with cells responsible for producing stomach acids. You should note, though, that they are found to cause side effects like diarrhea, headache, itching, and nausea.

Tags: Constant, Five, Heartburn, HeartburnSymptoms, Treat, Ways

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 1st, 2010 at 6:43 am and is filed under articles. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.