Does DeMeester score still define GERD?

R M L Neto; F A M Herbella; F Schlottmann; M G Patti

doi:10.1093/dote/doy118

Does DeMeester score still define GERD?

Dis Esophagus. 2019 May 1;32(5):doy118. doi: 10.1093/dote/doy118.

Authors

R M L Neto¹, F A M Herbella¹, F Schlottmann², M G Patti²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Surgery, Escola Paulista de Medicina, São Paulo, Brazil.
² Department of Surgery, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, USA.

PMID: 30561585
DOI: 10.1093/dote/doy118

Abstract

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) clinical presentation may encompass a myriad of symptoms that may mimic other esophageal and extra-esophageal diseases. Thus, GERD diagnosis by symptoms only may be inaccurate. Upper digestive endoscopy and barium esophagram may also be misleading. pH monitoring must be added often for a definitive diagnosis. The DeMeester score (DMS) is a composite score of the acid exposure during a prolonged ambulatory pH monitoring that has been used since 1970s to categorize patients as GERD+ or GERD-. We showed in this review that DMS has some limitations and strengths. Although there is not a single instrument to precisely diagnose GERD in all of its variances, pH monitoring analyzed at the light of DMS is still a reliable method for scientific purposes as well as for clinical decision making. There are no data that show that acid exposure time is superior-or for that matter inferior-as compared to DMS.

Keywords: DeMeester score; ambulatory pH monitoring; gastroesophageal reflux disease.

Publication types

Editorial
Review

MeSH terms

Esophageal pH Monitoring*
Gastroesophageal Reflux / diagnosis*
Humans