aswander

Acid Reflux may be the cause of your symptoms. I understand that at first, it might seem counter-intuitive, as acid is supposed to be in your stomach, right? Wrong. Acid is supposed to be in your stomach, but when the lower or upper esophageal spinchter muscles in your esophagous weaken, this can cause acid reflux. Why? These purpose of these muscles is to keep that extra-strong hydrochloric acid in your stomach, where it belongs. When they begin to fail, the acid begins creeping into your esophagous (GERD) and into your throat (LPR).

GERD is the more better known form of acid reflux, causing the common symptom heartburn. But there is a 2nd, lesser known form of acid reflux called LPR, which is short for laryngeal-pharyngeal reflux. With LPR, a much smaller amount of acid gets up your esophagous, leaves the esophagous, and goes even higher - into your throat. Your larynx is in your throat and has no natural protection agains acid. When it gets irritated, and/or, when the lining of the throat gets irritated by the acid, it typicaly produces one or both of these sympomts: 1) sensation of a lump in the throat (that won't go away) 2)chronic cough.

In addition, LPR sufferers can also have a lot of throat pain, sinus-like problems, extreme sensitivity to smells - all caused by the mucus in their sinus passages carrying and spreading that hydrochloric acid all around.

But lump in the throat and/or cough is usually the first symptom to show up. Then it begins getting worse.

There is treatment - 2 PPIs per day. A PPI is a proton-pump inhibitor. Most are sold by prescription (Nexium, Prevacic, Protonix, Aciphex) and one is sold OTC (Prilosec). Though treatment for GERD is usually one dose of a PPI per day, treatment for LPR is 2 doses of a PPI per day. Nexium is usually the most effective drug for people with LPR.

There is lots of information on LPR in the GERD message board. About 1/2 the messages are for LPR.