If anyone knows of an ENT doc who specializes in LPR in the Washington DC area or Northern Va, please let me know.

I live near the capital of the free world and in one of the fastest growing counties in the USA (Loudoun County, VA) but can't find one of these docs.
I absolutely refuse to go to another doctor of any specialty that doesn't understand this disease.

I see there are specialists in Penn., Conn., NY, NJ and NC.; close but not close enough. We have lots of Universitys but how to find a LPR specialist at one of them??

Thanks in Advance,
Tricia R.

Hi Tricia,
Small world - I live in Fairfax County. I have seen an ENT who diagnosed my LPR via laryngoscopy, but she is not a specialist in the area at all (but at least she knows it exists). I have also asked about specialists in DC and haven't gotten a response. Pretty crazy since we are close to so many teaching hospitals, etc. I'll let you know if I find one and hopefully someone who knows a good doctor in our area will respond!
Mommy

Here's a hint - just search for "voice disorders" and the city that you want to be seen in. Most LPR will fall under voice disorder clinics, and barring that, you can see a gastrol

In DC, George Washington University has a "voice treatment center" located at the Ambulatory Care Center. Steven Bielamowicz, MD and Pamela R. Kearney, MD are in charge of this center. They are laryngologists.

You'll still need to see a gastro for specialized tests like ph monitoring and endoscopies.

Thank you so much Aswander. I did find the Voice Center at GW and will see about making an appointment. My concern is that it seems like the medications I have tried so far have given me pretty bad side effects (feel worse on them than just having the LPR), so I'm not sure what to do. I hope that one of them works and doesn't give me side effects (most notably headaches, diarrhea and major stomach cramps, and chest pains). Thanks again! Tricia, do you think you'll try and contact the voice center at GW as well? It sounds like they could really help.

I can't believe there isn't someone in MD. Baltimore is truly the center of the medical universe! :)

My GE recommended an ENT. He doesn't "specialize" in LPR as far as I know, but when he used the scope he immediately said I must have acid getting up there.

But surely someone around here would fit the bill. Maybe not close enough, but closer than PA etc.

But, the idea of trying "voice disorder" is a good one.

Hi Ol'Line Rebel - Have you looked into Johns Hopkins? They've got to have specialists in LPR (I would think). That's a bit far from me (about an hour without traffic) since I have two small children and work (with not much in the way of sick leave since I went on maternity leave and then had emergency gall bladder surgery). I am going to try and squeeze a visit to GW if they are seeing new patients.

Hi Ol'Line Rebel - Have you looked into Johns Hopkins? They've got to have specialists in LPR (I would think). That's a bit far from me (about an hour without traffic) since I have two small children and work (with not much in the way of sick leave since I went on maternity leave and then had emergency gall bladder surgery). I am going to try and squeeze a visit to GW if they are seeing new patients.


I go to Greater Baltimore MC doctors who are loosely associated with JH. You'd be amazed all the networking up here. GBMC is very good despite not being officially a teaching place; even in my mother's day it was way advanced as far as "bedside manner" for patients - individual rooms, etc. It grew out of a woman's hospital. But yes, we also have JH and UofMD, 2 of the best medical schools around, as well as the former the true forerunning innovator of them all.

Thank you all for all of your replies, I just checked this thread after posting the initial topic and was suprised by all the posts.

MommyinVA, glad to hear from you neighbor. Somehow it's comforting to have another person so close by who understands this disease. We will have to continue to compare notes on the topic and share any good resources we find. I am going to look into the GW group under "voice disorders". I didn't realize that they had that. I wonder if the group has anyone that specializes in reflux, will have to seek further info from them. I will have to wait a month or two as my insurance is changing right now; husband just got a new job. Also as O'Line Rebel mentions, I had heard of UofMd docs who specialize but was also hoping for something a bit closer. It is a good thought to keep in mind.

Aswander, thanks again for your very smart comments. I am beginning to want to zero in on the ENT's, voice specialists, because Gastro's have let me down. I did have the 48 hr. ph test which I described a bit about under the belching thread. It was done by a very prominent doctor at Georgetown, Dr. Stanley Benjamin. He was really quick and as I have had with other doctors wanted to sell me on his agenda from the get go. He, for all his great reputation, did not seem to be able to "think out of the box". He found from the Bravo test that I had continual daytime reflux and no nighttime. He says the lack of nighttime reflux is proof of an intact functioning LES and feels daytime belching is the reason for the reflux. He reluctantly admitted it was LPR and passed it off to an ENT. He could not admit that there could be any other reasons for belching other than "aerophagia" or air swallowing that I went into on the other thread.

Thanks again everyone for the info. It's very helpful.

Tricia R.