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Copyright ©The Author(s) 2015. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Feb 16, 2015; 3(2): 102-111
Published online Feb 16, 2015. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v3.i2.102
Upper aerodigestive tract disorders and gastro-oesophageal reflux disease
Andrea Ciorba, Chiara Bianchini, Michele Zuolo, Carlo Vittorio Feo
Andrea Ciorba, Chiara Bianchini, ENT Department, University of Ferrara and S. Anna University Hospital, 44124 Ferrara, Italy
Michele Zuolo, Carlo Vittorio Feo, Department of Surgery, University of Ferrara and S. Anna University Hospital, 44124 Ferrara, Italy
Author contributions: Ciorba A, Bianchini C and Zuolo M provided the literature search and drafted the manuscript; Feo CV wrote and revised the manuscript.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Andrea Ciorba, MD, PhD, ENT Department, University of Ferrara and S. Anna University Hospital, Via Aldo Moro 8, 44124 Ferrara, Italy. andrea.ciorba@unife.it
Telephone: +39-532-239745 Fax: +39-532-237447
Received: July 26, 2014
Peer-review started: July 27, 2014
First decision: August 28, 2014
Revised: September 20, 2014
Accepted: October 28, 2014
Article in press: October 29, 2014
Published online: February 16, 2015
Processing time: 193 Days and 23.3 Hours
Abstract

A wide variety of symptoms and diseases of the upper aerodigestive tract are associated to gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD). These disorders comprise a large variety of conditions such as asthma, chronic otitis media and sinusitis, chronic cough, and laryngeal disorders including paroxysmal laryngospasm. Laryngo-pharyngeal reflux disease is an extraoesophageal variant of GORD that can affect the larynx and pharynx. Despite numerous research efforts, the diagnosis of laryngopharyngeal reflux often remains elusive, unproven and controversial, and its treatment is then still empiric. Aim of this paper is to review the current literature on upper aerodigestive tract disorders in relation to pathologic gastro-oesophageal reflux, focusing in particular on the pathophysiology base and results of the surgical treatment of GORD.

Keywords: Clinical management; Gastro-oesophageal reflux; Extraoesophageal disease; Upper aerodigestive tract disorders; Etiopathogenesis; Therapy

Core tip: Despite a growing number of clinical evidences, the association between gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) and extraoesophageal manifestations still derives from uncontrolled studies on small groups of patients. The evidences in the literature to support the proton pump inhibitor treatment of respiratory symptoms associated with GORD, in the absence of typical symptoms of reflux (heartburn and regurgitation), are scanty. A specific diagnostic tool, of respiratory symptoms associated with GORD, is missing even if oesophageal 24-h pH monitoring has been recommended. Large and prospective studies to assess the successful outcome of antireflux therapy, as well as surgical therapy, are still missing.