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Sammantha

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Newport
Hi, i have been in and out of this forum for awhile. I have been diagnosed with a neuromuscular disorder. My GP basically said that i definetly have something wrong with my motor neurons but she and my neurologist feel that because of my age and my ability to still use my affected muscles makes it difficult to pinpoint what kind of disorder i have at this time. With that being said, i have something that i thought was totally unrealated to ALS. Three years ago i had what i would describe as an esophageal spasm but at the time it felt like a heartack. The ER doc said it was probably costochondritis or a peptic ulcer. I had acid reflux so was prescribed medecine. Two years later i went to my "old" GP because i was having similar chest pain, i had a baruim x-ray done that was normal, so stupidly i stopped taking the medicine and chalked it up to costochondritis. Well all this time i have a continual sore throat and swollen neck lymph nodes and it is not from allergies. I went to the hospital recently because of sever pain in my upper abdomen, they referred me for endoscopy and at the time i had laryngitis. I will have the endoscopy on the 10th. I have had a bitter taste and chest pain for years, but never attributed to heartburn. The ER doc prescribed pain killers and zantac until my endoscopy. As soon as i started the Zantac i developed thrush, well my new GP could not believe it and it was the second time i had it. If my nose is stuffed and i my mouth is tense, i fall asleep and my mouth opens, then i wake up and close it, over and over. That is what happened the last time i got thrush. This only occurs when my allergies act up or i have a cold. She has tested for HIV/AIDs twice! I do not have it! Now she is looking up some other kind of immune problems, after my research of ALS and my new develop into my chest pain and sore throats it all connects? My neurologist does not know of my esophagus problems, i will let him know when i get the results. I guess i will see after my endoscopy......... If anyone has any advice or similar experience please write back. Thanks Sammantha
 
I do not know about acid reflux and ALS. I do know that my daughter was diagnosed with acid reflux at 12 when she had had several sore throat bouts that wasn't strep or a virus and a bad case of esophagitis over Superbowl weekend two years in a row. It was our pharmacist that suggested acid reflux when I was getting her presciption for her antibiotic for the second case of esphagitis. The next time we went to her doctor, I mentioned it. At first he dismissed it because it came from a pharmacist, but the more we talked about her symptoms, the more he shook his head and realized that was the problem. She was probably born with it, but it was mild enough to elude us for a while. She takes a prescription dose of Zantac, although we buy the generic, Rantidine, she takes two at a time.
 
I've never heard of or thought about a connection between GERD and ALS, but for what it's worth, my husband has both. He has had GERD for a long time (he takes Prevacid) maybe 10 years? ALS was DX 8/07, with first symptoms spring of 2005.
 
Thank you for your replies.. I was on a lot of antibiotics for strep and recurring sore throats. I must say though that it is sore throat right under my neck where the glands are and not technically were the back of the throat is. I am glad your pharmacist figured it out, i have encountered many doctors who diregard their colleagues opinions. Especially when i kept getting referred, one would say well that test was done locally we have better equipment i would not rely on that test. Then when they would not find anything on the MRI but the EMG they would, they would refer me again for another round of tests. If i would have kept taking the antacids i would not have had all these problems! It is funny my ENT never even mentioned acid reflux could do that, nor did my GP. It was the ER doc who clued me in. When he prescribed me the antacid i was like "I dont have heartburn, i used to have it a long time ago but don't anymore," and he said that heartburn can cause chest pain and an acid taste too, not just what i thought it was! (Thank you Shatzie and Staying Positive.. Sam :)
 
Diaphragm weakening can cause GERD

I read somewhere that in ALS GERD can occur if the diaphragm weakens because it somehow helps the lower esophageal sphincter keep closed.
 
I've never heard of a connection between ALS and acid reflux... but, who knows.. as we all had our own everyday health "issues" before ALS, don't see why it would change during ALS. My mum never complained of indigestion or reflux... but then again, she did not before she had ALS... Oddly, my son (who does not have ALS etc...) has been treated for GERD for most of his life due to a birth defect...
 
One more thing...

I was told that if you have acid reflux you should always wait an hour after eating before lying down. I didn't know if you were told this and it has really helped my daughter.
 
I instictively learned not to eat before i went to bed, especially raw vegetables....or mexican food! I also eat as soon as i wake because it makes my stomach pain go away and it makes the acid not so bad.
 
I never had reflux in my life- and could eat the spiciest foods in huge quantities. Now I reach for the antacids a couple of times a day. Plus I get bouts of painful hiccups- chest-quaking kind of hiccups. I do not know what all of this means but both conditions see related to my physical state. If I want to control the heartburn, it will go away if I sit perfectly still and do absolutely nothing for a couple of hours. Heartburn has become, for me, a signal that I need to take a rest. Why this is, I cannot figure out
 
cindym

I would tell your GP ASAP... All you will have to take is a prescription strength antacid pill. If you do not your heartburn can turn into GERD which in turn can cause peptic ulcer amongst other things..... If heartburn persists it is a sign of GERD, heartburn is normal every now and then but if you have it for weeks then it is something that needs to be looked into. I used to have heartburn but it went away, then i developed GERD but did not know it. I thought that i just had unknown chest pain and sore throats. I would get laryngitis and thought it was due to my sore throats. I hope you start to feel better, and it is very smart of you to treat your heartburn and not just let it go..... My mom has a hiatal hernia and has crazy heartburn... The top of her stomach looks rock hard, she is very skinny and now looks like she is pregnant! Her ct scan revealed the hernia which can be serious and guess what, all they did was prescribe her an antacid! A strong one.
 
Thanks for the advice, Sam. I get so used to thinking that all these symptoms must be somehow related to each other that I forget sometimes it can just be some "normal" thing. I am due for a GP check-up anyway.
 
Hello.. I was reading the post about Gerd... my dad has never had problems with Gerd until the progression of his ALS.. He has had ALS for a little over a year. He really did not even realize he had it... the reason we went to a GI doctor was because his Pulmonary doctor refered him due to chronic coughing. His lung x-rays were fine. She was right on .. his endoscopy showed sever Esophagitis. So this will be our first day on meds... I pray this works... his continous coughing is wearing him down.
 
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