How a blast of hot gas fired down the oesophagus could ease the agony of ... trends now
A blast of hot gas could ease the agony of heartburn.
Argon gas is fired from a thin tube inserted deep into the oesophagus (food pipe) while the patient is under sedation.
It is targeted at an area around the valve where food passes from the oesophagus and into the stomach. This is where stomach acid often leaks back up into the food pipe, causing pain.
The heat from the gas 'cooks' the top layer of tissue in the oesophagus, causing it to tighten and shrink — narrowing the oesophagus in that area.
This reduces the space available for acid to seep through the valve, so easing the burning sensation.
The treatment targets the area where stomach acid often leaks back up into the food pipe, causing pain
Argon gas is fired from a thin tube inserted deep into the oesophagus while the patient is under sedation
A clinical trial testing the new approach is under way in Germany, involving 15 patients with severe heartburn.
Heartburn affects around one in three people at some point in their lives. It is caused by hydrochloric acid — produced in the stomach to break down food — flowing back up the oesophagus, causing pain.
This occurs when there is a fault in a valve, called the lower oesophageal sphincter, which controls the flow of food into the stomach and prevents the acid from going the other way.
Occasional heartburn can be treated with over-the-counter antacid pills, which dampen down the inflammation in the oesophagus caused by leaking fluids.
But an estimated eight million people in the UK suffer chronic acid reflux — known as gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) — where the lining of the oesophagus becomes damaged by excess acid exposure.
