Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)

Living with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) can mean struggling with daily challenges. Mount Sinai surgeons are highly experienced in providing relief through minimally invasive techniques that minimize scarring and speed up recovery times.

About GERD

Gastrointestinal reflux disease (GERD) occurs when the band of muscle around the lower esophagus fails to tighten after eating or drinking, which allows corrosive acid and other stomach secretions to move upward into the esophagus. Long-standing reflux can cause ulceration, bleeding, and eventually scarring of the lower esophagus.

Treatments for GERD

If lifestyle changes such as weight loss, dietary modifications, and sleep position don’t provide enough relief from reflux, medications such as a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) or an H2 Antagonist are usually prescribed. However if your symptoms require ever increasing doses of medication, if you’re unable to take regular, long-term medication, or if complications such as stricture or bleeding develop, you may be considered for an anti-reflux surgical procedure.

The surgeons at Mount Sinai complete a thorough evaluation for each patient to assess the level of damage that the reflux has caused and to ensure that your condition will be improved by surgery.

At Mount Sinai, laparoscopic nissen fundoplication is a frequently performed anti-reflux surgery. Using laparoscopic techniques, our surgeons wrap the top of the stomach around the outside of the lower esophagus to tighten the lower esophageal sphincter. Benefits of laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication as compared to an open surgery include less blood loss, minimal scarring, and lower chance of infection, as well as shorter hospital stays and recovery times. Most patients who undergo this procedure can leave the hospital the next day and are able to resume activities in a relatively short time.