Hospitalization for GERD up 103 percent

WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- U.S. hospitalizations for treating disorders caused by gastroespohageal reflux disease, known as GERD, increased by 103 percent from 1998 to 2005.

A report by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality found during the same period, hospitalizations of patients who in addition to the ailment for which they were admitted had milder forms of GERD, rose by 216 percent.

Patients with GERD have stomach acid back up into the esophagus, causing extreme, chronic heartburn and if left untreated, GERD can cause esophageal disorders such as bleeding, trouble swallowing, Barrett's esophagus -- a precancerous condition and in extreme cases, cancer of the esophagus.

The AHRQ report also found hospitalizations specifically for GERD increased roughly 5 percent, as a whole, during the period -- from roughly 91,000 to 95,000. Hospitalizations for GERD in children ages 2 to 17 rose by 84 percent during the same period and 42 percent for infants under age 2.