The Study for Evaluating the Effective Duration of Omeprazole Treatment in Larygopharyngeal Reflux

Abstract

Abstract
Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) is commonly diagnosed in Otolaryngology Department. The treatment includes lifestyle modifications and proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) medication for the duration of 3 months. Overutilization of PPI can cause undesirable side effects and financial burdens. This study aims to evaluate the effective duration of omeprazole treatment in LPR and the factors that affect treatment duration. This study is an prospective observational study. The data was collected from patients who were diagnosed with LPR at the Department of Otolaryngology, HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Medical Center from August 2012 to January 2015. All patients were given lifestyle modifications advice and were prescribed with omeprazole at the dosage of 80 mg per day (omeprazole 20 mg 2 tabs oral bid ac) for the total duration of 3
months, with once a month follow up visits. There were 50 patients including 17 male (34%) and 33 female (66%). The age were 18-84 years old (mean ± SD : 50.2 ± 14.6), with majority in the less than 60 years group (74%). BMI were 15.6 - 34.3 (mean ± SD : 23.5 ± 3.8), with majority in the normal weight group (62%). Thirty of the patients (60%) had no underlying diseases while 20 had underlying diseases (40%). Baseline reflux symptom index (RSI) scores were 14 - 41 (mean ± SD : 21.6 ± 5.8). After 1st month of treatment, 19 patients (38%) showed recovery while after 2nd and 3rd months of treatment, 10 patients (32%) and 17 patients (89%) showed recovery respectively. The study showed that the total recovery percentage after 1, 2, and 3 months of treatment were at 38%, 58%, and 96% respectively. In conclusion, the study showed that more than half
of LPR patients recovered after 2 months of omeprazole treatment and there was no association between factors including gender, age, BMI, and underlying illnesses and the duration of recovery from LPR.