Comorbidities are frequent in patients with gastroesophageal reflux disease in a tertiary health care hospital.
BACKGROUND
Several aspects of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) have been studied, but the frequency of comorbidities is not yet fully understood.


OBJECTIVE
To study the prevalence of GERD comorbidities in a tertiary care hospital.


METHODS
We prospectively studied 670 consecutive adult patients from the outpatient department of our facility. A diagnosis was established using clinical, endoscopic and/or pHmetry-related findings. Each patient's medical file was reviewed with respect to the presence of other medical conditions and diagnoses.


RESULTS
Of the 670 patients, 459 (68.6%) were female, and the mean age was 55.94 (17-80 years). We registered 316 patients (47.1%) with the erosive form of GERD and 354 patients (52.9%) with the non-erosive form. A total of 1,664 instances of comorbidities were recorded in 586 patients (87.5%), with the most common being arterial hypertension (21%), hypercholesterolemia (9%), obesity (9%), type II diabetes mellitus (5%) and depression (4%). Two or more comorbidities were present in 437 individuals (64.8%). The occurrence of comorbidities increased with age and was higher in patients with the non-erosive form of GERD.


CONCLUSIONS
In a tertiary referral population, comorbidities were very common, and these may have worsened the already impaired health-related quality of life of these patients. Clinicians caring for GERD patients in this setting must be aware of the likelihood and nature of comorbid disorders and their impact on disease presentation and patient management.
Moraes-Filho
Joaquim Prado P
JP
Department of Gastroenterology, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo/SP, Brazil. joaquim.prado@uol.com.br
Navarro-Rodriguez
Tomás
T
Eisig
Jaime N
JN
Barbuti
Ricardo C
RC
Chinzon
Decio
D
Quigley
Eamonn M M
EM
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015897:Comorbidity; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D005764:Gastroesophageal Reflux / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D006937:Hypercholesterolemia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult
Am J Gastroenterol. 2006 Aug;101(8):1900-20; quiz 1943
16928254
Circulation. 2004 Sep 7;110(10):1245-50
15326067
Lancet. 1990 Jan 27;335(8683):205-8
1967675
Am J Gastroenterol. 2006 Nov;101(11):2463-9
17090277
Gut. 1999 Aug;45(2):172-80
10403727
J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 1980 May;79(5):656-70
7366233
N Engl J Med. 2001 Aug 16;345(7):479-86
11519501
Diabetes Care. 1992 Nov;15(11):1509-16
1468278
Gastroenterology. 1997 May;112(5):1448-56
9136821
MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2006 Sep 15;55(36):985-8
16971886
Arq Gastroenterol. 2005 Apr-Jun;42(2):122-7
16127569
JAMA. 2001 May 16;285(19):2486-97
11368702
Can J Psychiatry. 2004 Feb;49(2):124-38
15065747
Am J Gastroenterol. 2005 Jun;100(6):1243-50
15929752
Z Gastroenterol. 2003 Dec;41(12):1137-43
14661122
Dis Esophagus. 2006;19(4):289-93
16866863
Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2006 Nov 1;24(9):1269-81
17059509
Arq Bras Cardiol. 1994 Dec;63(6):473-9
7605231
Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2004 Aug;2(8):656-64
15290657
Am J Gastroenterol. 2002 Feb;97(2):241-8
11866257
Aliment Pharmacol Ther. 2006 Jun 15;23(12):1725-33
16817916
Gut. 2004 Jul;53(7):1024-31
15194656