Talk to the Veterans Crisis Line now
U.S. flag
An official website of the United States government
Veterans Benefits and Health Care About VA Find a VA Location

VA Health Systems Research

Go to the VA ORD website
Go to the QUERI website

HSR&D Citation Abstract

Search | Search by Center | Search by Source | Keywords in Title

Obesity increases oesophageal acid exposure.

El-Serag HB, Ergun GA, Pandolfino J, Fitzgerald S, Tran T, Kramer JR. Obesity increases oesophageal acid exposure. Gut. 2007 Jun 1; 56(6):749-55.

Dimensions for VA is a web-based tool available to VA staff that enables detailed searches of published research and research projects.

If you have VA-Intranet access, click here for more information vaww.hsrd.research.va.gov/dimensions/

VA staff not currently on the VA network can access Dimensions by registering for an account using their VA email address.    Search Dimensions for VA for this citation
* Don't have VA-internal network access or a VA email address? Try searching the free-to-the-public version of Dimensions


Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Obesity has been associated with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GERD); however, the mechanism by which obesity may cause GERD is unclear. AIM: To examine the association between oesophageal acid exposure and total body or abdominal anthropometric measures. METHODS: A cross-sectional study of consecutive patients undergoing 24 h pH-metry was conducted. Standardised measurements of body weight and height as well as waist and hip circumference were obtained. The association between several parameters of oesophageal acid exposures and anthropometric measures were examined in univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: 206 patients (63% women) with a mean age of 51.4 years who were not on acid-suppressing drugs were enrolled. A body mass index (BMI) of > 30 kg/m(2) (compared with BMI < 25 kg/m(2)) was associated with a significant increase in acid reflux episodes, long reflux episodes ( > 5 min), time with pH < 4, and a calculated summary score. These significant associations have affected total, postprandial, upright and supine pH measurements. Waist circumference was also associated with oesophageal acid exposure, but was not as significant or consistent as BMI. When adjusted for waist circumference by including it in the same model, the association between BMI > 30 kg/m(2) and measures of oesophageal acid exposure became attenuated for all, and not significant for some, thus indicating that waist circumference may mediate a large part of the effect of obesity on oesophageal acid exposure. CONCLUSIONS: Obesity increases the risk of GERD, at least partly, by increasing oesophageal acid exposure. Waist circumference partly explains the association between obesity and oesophageal acid exposure.




Questions about the HSR website? Email the Web Team

Any health information on this website is strictly for informational purposes and is not intended as medical advice. It should not be used to diagnose or treat any condition.