The Oesophageal Patients Association

Former patients helping new patients

WHEN IT GOES WRONG

The first thing to be reassured about is that the oesophagus usually works very well indeed. Occasionally, however, problems occur and the following are some of the things you may hear about or experience and includes sources where you can find good quality information about the specific conditions.

Hiatus Hernia

If the hole in the diaphragm is a little too large and the top of your stomach pokes through into the chest you have a hiatal hernia. The hiatus is the hole in your diaphragm and when it becomes too wide your stomach (or more usually just the top part of your stomach) comes up and through that hole.

Acid Reflux

Often, patients with a hiatus hernia have acid reflux from the stomach because the sphincter valve at the bottom of the oesophagus is weaker than it should be. The sphincter muscle normally stays closed unless you’re swallowing food but if that muscle opens more than it should, contents from the stomach and the intestines can come back into your oesophagus. We call this acid and bile reflux.

Oesophagitis

Chronic (long term) reflux of stomach and intestinal juices irritates the oesophageal lining and can cause ulceration (oesophagitis).

Barrett’s Oesophagus

In some people, chronic acid refllux/Oesophagitis can cause a change of the lining in the oesophagus, which is known as Barrett’s Oesophagus. We think that only a small number of Barrett’s cases (0.5 – 1% per year) develop into anything more sinister. Cancer development is believed to be triggered by more factors than simple reflux. We have no idea how many people in the general population have Barrett’s and if it will turn to cancer.