Overview Heartburn
Heartburn may cause burping, nausea, bloating, or trouble swallowing. These symptoms can sometimes last up to 2 hours or longer. In some people, heartburn symptoms may cause sleep problems, a chronic cough, asthma
Heartburn usually is worse after you eat. It's often made worse if you lie down or bend over. It gets better if you sit or stand up.
Almost everyone will have troubles with heartburn now and then.
Heartburn occurs more often in adults than in children. Many women have heartburn every day when they're pregnant. That's because the growing uterus puts increasing upward pressure on the stomach.
Symptoms of heartburn and symptoms of a heart attack
Dyspepsia is a medical term that's used to describe a vague feeling of fullness, gnawing, or burning in the chest or upper belly, especially after eating. A person may describe this feeling as "gas." Other symptoms may occur at the same time. They include belching, rumbling noises in the belly, increased passing gas (flatus), poor appetite, and a change in bowel habits. Causes of dyspepsia can vary from minor to serious.
Causes of heartburn Heartburn occurs when food and stomach juices gastroesophageal reflux (Figure 1) . Common causes of reflux include:
Incomplete closing of the valve (the lower esophageal sphincter, or LES esophagus Certain foods and drinks that make your symptoms worse. These may include chocolate, mint, alcohol, pepper, spicy foods, high-fat foods, or drinks with caffeine in them, such as tea, coffee, colas, or energy drinks. If your symptoms are worse after you eat a certain food, you may want to stop eating it to see if your symptoms get better. Pressure on the stomach. This can be caused by obesity, frequent bending over and lifting, tight clothes, straining with bowel movements, vigorous exercise, and pregnancy. Smoking and use of other tobacco products. Prescription and non-prescription medicines, such as aspirin, ibuprofen, prednisone, iron, potassium, antihistamines, and sleeping pills. A hiatal hernia (Figure 2) . It occurs when a small portion of the stomach pushes upward through the diaphragm. This is the muscle that separates the lungs from the belly. Stress Severity of heartburn Mild heartburn occurs about once a month. Moderate heartburn occurs about once a week.
Severe heartburn occurs every day. It can cause problems such as bleeding, trouble swallowing, and weight loss. Heartburn may occur with other symptoms, such as hoarseness, a feeling that food is stuck in your throat, tightness in your throat, a hoarse voice gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)
Heartburn symptoms that won't go away can be a sign of a more serious medical condition, such as severe inflammation of the esophagus or cancer of the stomach or esophagus.
Heartburn is more serious when it occurs with belly pain or bleeding.
Belly pain, especially pain directly below the breastbone, may be a sign of more serious problems. These include heart disease peptic ulcer disease gallbladder disease gastritis Vomiting of blood may mean bleeding in the digestive tract, often from the esophagus or stomach. If you have bleeding in the esophagus, stomach, or part of the small intestine attached to the stomach (duodenum), your stools may be dark red or black and tarry. Large amounts of bleeding can lead to shock Heartburn in children Almost all babies spit up, especially newborns. Spitting up decreases when the muscles of the esophagus become more coordinated. This process can take as little as 6 months or as long as 1 year. Spitting up isn't the same thing as vomiting. Vomiting is forceful and repeated. Spitting up may seem forceful. But it usually occurs shortly after feeding, is effortless, and causes no discomfort.
Children who often vomit after eating during the first 2 years of life are more likely to have heartburn and reflux problems, such as GERD, later in life. Children with reflux problems also have increased chances of other problems, such as sinusitis pneumonia
Treatment The treatment of heartburn depends on how bad your heartburn is and what other symptoms you have. Home treatment and medicines that you can buy without a prescription usually will relieve mild to moderate heartburn. Make sure to see your doctor if heartburn occurs often and isn't relieved by home treatment.
Figure 1 - Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) In GERD, the valve at the top of the stomach (where the stomach and the esophagus connect) does not close tightly enough. This allows the contents of the stomach to move up into the esophagus.
GERD usually causes a feeling of burning, warmth, heat, or pain that often starts in the upper part of your belly, just below your breastbone (sternum). This feeling (called heartburn) may spread in waves upward into your throat, and you may have a sour taste in your mouth. Heartburn is sometimes called indigestion, acid regurgitation, sour stomach, or pyrosis.
Current as of: October 19, 2023
Author: Ignite Healthwise, LLC StaffClinical Review Board
Figure 2 - Sliding Hiatal Hernia The esophagus connects to the stomach at an opening in the diaphragm called the hiatus. The lower esophageal sphincter (LES), which is normally at the same level as the diaphragm, keeps stomach contents (food, acid, and other digestive juices) from backing up (or refluxing) into the esophagus.
But when a sliding hiatal hernia is present, part of the stomach moves up through the hiatus and into the chest cavity. This pushes the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) up into the chest cavity away from the hiatus. Away from the hiatus, the LES loses the support that it needs from the diaphragm to stay closed. This raises the risk for symptoms of heartburn and gastroesophageal reflux disease.
Current as of: October 19, 2023
Author: Ignite Healthwise, LLC StaffClinical Review Board
