Prevalence of GERD symptoms in a representative Israeli adult population

Ami D. Sperber, Zamir Halpern, Pesach Shvartzman, Michael Friger, Tami Freud, Anat Neville, Alex Fich

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    19 Scopus citations

    Abstract

    The prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) symptoms in the general population is lower in Asian than Western countries. Data are lacking for countries in the Middle East. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence and severity of GERD symptoms among Israeli Jews. A questionnaire including 8 specific questions for GERD symptoms was administered by telephone interview to a representative sample of the population. One thousand two hundred twenty-one of 1839 individuals were successfully contacted and 981 had valid, complete data. The mean age was 45.0 years and 55% were females. Over the previous year 34.8% of the respondents reported suffering any GERD symptom. Of these 11.6% reported retrosternal burning, 11.7% retrosternal pain, 19.0% an acid taste in the mouth, and 17.5% reflux of gastric content. In all, 6.5%, 5.2%, 10.4%, and 7.9%, respectively, suffered these symptoms at least once a week, and 2.0%, 1.8%, 2.4%, and 2.3%, respectively, defined their symptoms as frequent and severe. Male sex (P=0.01) and a functional lower gastrointestinal (GI) disorder (P<0.0001) contributed significantly to the severity of upper GI refluxlike symptoms. In conclusion, GERD symptoms are common among Israeli Jews. The symptoms are generally of mild-to-moderate severity and are significantly associated with lower functional GI disorders.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)457-461
    Number of pages5
    JournalJournal of Clinical Gastroenterology
    Volume41
    Issue number5
    DOIs
    StatePublished - 1 May 2007

    Keywords

    • Epidemiology
    • Functional bowel disorder
    • GERD
    • Israel
    • Prevalence

    ASJC Scopus subject areas

    • Gastroenterology

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