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STUDY OF PREVALENCE AND RISK FACTORS FOR GASTROESOPHAGEAL REFLUX IN PREGNANCY

Dr. Muhammad Mohsin, Dr.Hafiz Mujtaba Hassan Usama, Dr. Adeela Shaharyar,

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES The prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux (GER) increases during pregnancy due to various factors such as reduced esophageal sphincter pressure, increased intra-abdominal pressure due to enlargement of the gravid uterus and alteration of the gastrointestinal transit. The present study aimed to determine the prevalence of GER in pregnancy . Methods Consecutive pregnant women (n = 400) were included in various stages of pregnancy who visited the maternity clinic or who were admitted to maternity wards. Patients with heartburn or regurgitation or both (n = 182) for at least a week were defined as cases and the controls were those without these symptoms (n = 218). Data on demographic variables and symptoms were analyzed using Pearson Chi Square, Yates Corrected Chi Square and the Fischer Exact Test and Student Independent T Test. P <0.05 was considered significant. Results The demographic characteristics between cases and controls were similar. The average age of the cases (23.68 ±3.37 years) was similar to controls (23.25 ± 3.31 years). The overall prevalence of GER was 45.5% (182/400), 77 (19.3%) had heartburn (GER-HB), 54 (13.5%) had regurgitation (GER-R) and 51 (12, 8%) had both (GER-HB). HB+ R). Age and pregnancy did not influence the frequency of symptoms. Symptoms were more common in the second (43.1%) and in the third trimester (54.1%) than in the first trimester (9.5%) in pregnant women with GER (p <0.001).The atypical symptoms were rare. GER was common among nonvegetarians (p = 0.02) and frequent consumers of carbonated beverages (p = 0.001). Conclusions The prevalence of GER was high during pregnancy, often in the second and third trimesters. Non-vegetarianism and carbonated beverages increase the risk of reflux during pregnancy. Keywords Gastroesophageal reflux . Pregnancy

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